


Where It Began

by mazymay12



Series: From the Start to the End [1]
Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Abuse, Alternate Universe - Underfell, Alternate Universe - Underswap, F/F, Fluff, Gonna update these tags more later on, Hey a papyrus actually gets a nickname, How Do I Tag, I'm Bad At Tagging, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Implied/Referenced Torture, M/M, Other, Prologue is a lot more profound than the actual plot, Suicide Attempt in the second Chapter, Updated slowly, Violence, an irrational amount of stupid fluff packed into one chapter, at least for the papyruses, but hes really sad so uh yeah, candy is super sad but its ok because sci is there to torture, error is such a mean name tho, have fun calling him a mistake every time you say his name Ink, hey Error gets a new nickname, implied/referenced experimentation on a child, inconsistent names, little bones is steven universe but with dads, little bones just wants to love everything, man i hope that lasts, name contemplation, sci is gonna break his neck with all the times hes jumped to conclusions, strawberry is probably mom tm by now, unrealistic old lady unrealistically spectating on a perceived family, whoop he gone, wow lust sans is an actual character now
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-11-13
Updated: 2018-08-23
Packaged: 2018-08-30 21:09:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 17
Words: 24,116
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8549200
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mazymay12/pseuds/mazymay12
Summary: The unexpected always tends to happen. Life's full of twists and turns, constantly surprising us with new found abilities, experiences, problems...The best any of us can do is hope we are prepared for what happens.Ink always thought he'd be ready for anything, but a little mix up with Error and magic proves him very, very wrong.





	1. Of Feelings and Stories

**Author's Note:**

> Every story has a beginning, a middle, and an end.
> 
> For each part, there's a place.
> 
> And, unfortunately, the start and finish of his tale is here, where white is all consuming. 
> 
> Despite this, he feels peace.
> 
>  
> 
> (He's lying.)

It started here.

  
That's what Error knew. That it had started here and it would end here. No matter how much his soul mourned at the thought of a finale, the show would come to a close. The curtains would fall like last hopes; what little he had left of this said 'hope' was completely gone.

It started here.

  
Pure white, taunting, screaming, laughing, pure silence... everything and nothing all at once. The sound echoed off what could have been walls and curled in his mind like chains... but there was no sound. It was all in his head.

It would end here, too. The endless room would be the last place he would rest. How he knew it would be him to give up the ghost was almost beyond him. Almost. Tucked deep down, in his yellowed soul, he knew. He knew why it would be him to fall, rather than his enemy on the battlefield. 

Error knew.

And it almost hurt. It hurt like red finger tips that should have been white digging into blackened bone, tearing down a matching skull or already ruined arms. It hurt like strings digging into the inverted heart that he had to call his very being.... 

No...

It hurt far worse than that, he realized.

Now, he knew that he should've known long ago, from the moment that he felt himself fall for his complete opposite. He was not blind to his feelings (of the lonely 'nights', of the tired sobs, and the longing cries for someone to hold him, even though he flinched at the thought of contact). He knew what the pang was, knew what surge of warmth every time he saw him meant.

But, now, it would not matter.

For there was an end to this tale... and it'd be his own. This fact was decided the moment he realized he loved Ink. But Ink... Ink did not love him. The Creator had to be merciless when it came to the Destroyer, the one person who had the ability to break apart everything he worked so hard to make.

Even so, to love something like Error, one would have to be crazy. He did not regret the killing he has brought forth, the suffering and torture that was created by his hand... one would be insane to love a creature as such.

But now? Now... he did regret.

  
He didn't want to be alone anymore. So there he was, playing this game over and over again. It was the only time he ever got someone to look at him without fear, without the need to run away. It was the only time someone spoke to him...

  
But that was then. Now? Now, it's time for the end.

  
The finish line is wrapped back to the beginning and he knows now, too, that, from the start, it was already ending.

 

  
This was just the final chapter of the book.


	2. A Choice

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ink brings up a valid point, when he says what he does.
> 
> Unfortunately, Error doesn't care... After all, why should he?

Ink stood before him, tall and proud. His chin was angled upward, as if smug, as he glared across the voidness. He could see him falter from time to time and wondered if it was because his instinct to give mercy or the exhausted look Error had.

He decided it was his morals. No one cared enough for Error to be worried.

 

  
Ink took one step forward... Error took two back.

That was the first warning Ink got. Something was wrong with the glitch before him and he wanted to know what it was.

Another three steps forward.

Five back.

"Error," Ink whispered, his voice gentle and sweet. It was sickening... How could anyone speak to him with that voice? It had to be fake; which only made him feel even more ill. But his soul betrayed him: he secretly hoped that his enemy meant the kind tone.

  
"Ink," Error whispered back, voice spazzing and weakening. It faded in and out at random intervals, stutters and echoes rang and resounded... this was the worse his voice had ever glitched. He hated how much it can reveal about the emotions he feels.

Ink hesitated before bending down, offering his hand (the pristine white was almost mocking, what with the black paint staining it. Almost like telling him what he used to be. God, he feels so sick.),"please, stop. I just want to talk."

"Unfortunately, I don't."

Silence pursued the two. On one hand, the creator stared at the destroyer as if the burning gaze could get him to open up the box of secrets he always seemed to have. On the other, the destroyer's gaze was on the 'ground', eyes almost completely closed.

  
Error fiddled with his jacket,"why don't you just kill me already? We both know I'll be the one to die here," he whispered, finally breaking the quiet that had settled upon them. He found that Ink trying to get him to talk was a lot nicer than the emptiness in which any other sound was drowned out in.

  
He realized that, if he were to ever try again, if he were to have a second chance, he would never be able to stand silence because, in this moment, he finally understood why he was always talking aloud.

He was scared.

He was scared because there was no white noise. There was nothing; just the proof of how alone he truly was.

Error decided that it'd be best if he died here, rather than be given a second chance. He would never be the same; the conclusion of how afraid he was made him realize that he really didn't want to be alone anymore... He'd be broken, if he wasn't already. He'd be a burden to whatever poor soul was to watch him.

"Error, I'm not going to kill you," Ink breathed, a horrified expression on his face as his fingers curled tighter around the paintbrush,"you might not be mine, but you're someone's creation. By default, I've got to protect you, too."

"Quite the twisted logic," Error remarked, gripping his discolored hands together, as if the pressure would snap him out of this moment and bring him back to a reality that made sense.  
  
"Twisted it may be, but you know I'm not wrong."  
  
...

 

"No, Ink. This... this is our last meeting. One of us... must die here."

"I don't think so, Error."

 

"Ink, please... just... just kill me please," he begged weakly," let this cycle end...!"  
  
Ink shook his head, a confident expression gracing the bone as he leaned forward,"I'm not going to kill you."

 

 His soul left as if it skipped a beat.  
  
"I didn't want to but... but I'll finish the job, then."  
  
Ink froze, his sockets widening. Error stared into the desperate gaze, magic gathering, pouring past the brim, solidifying...

 

And going up, towards his weakened body.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I couldn't figure out how to continue this... all my ideas are a little silly so the next chapter might be the end, if I can't think of something else.


	3. A Child's Heart

The bones shot up, up, and through, all while Ink watched in horror. He felt sick, watching the glitched things impale Error. He could see the rips and tears in the other's clothes, could catch peeks of broken bone where the magic broke through. He heard the gagging and cries of pain from his so called enemy.

He felt the world shift, the time slow as he watched the dust collect and float. The imagery made him want to scream but he was cut silent, as Error was doing enough of that for the both of them.

Ink couldn't bring back the dead. That's not within his capabilities, despite being looked upon as a god. He could only create and watch what would happen... But he couldn't let this happen. If he can't bring back the dead, then he'll stop the other from dying. How much time he had was unknown to him as he ran to the other's side, summoning magic, without really thinking about what  _type,_ and slamming his hand onto Error's chest.

More wails of pure  _agony_ filled the void, somehow empty and mute while echoing eerily at the same time. The already bright place caused temporary blindness to Ink was brilliant light exploded from his hand and Error's body.

When the screaming stopped and the light filtered away, Ink was left to stare dumbfounded at what he'd done to the other. His hand hovered where it had rested on the other's chest and all that seemingly remained was clothes that Error once adorned. 

Had it failed?

Ink lowered his hand, placing it against the fabric and shivered. Sucking in a breath, he forced himself not to cry.

He'd never taken a life before, not even indirectly. And this life... meant far more than he'd ever reveal. 

 

 

 

A quiet cough caught his attention and Ink's eyes (when did he close them?) flew open, changing shape and color before settling. 

...A little head poked through the hole of the shirt, a wide-eyed stare settling on him. Innocence radiated off the familiar looking being.

"...Error?" Ink breathed, scooting a little closer. 

The other blinked, cocking his head,"what's... 'error'?"

 

...Fuck.

* * *

 

Ink groaned as the headache-inducing questions assaulted his mind. The creator of such a pain was coming from in front of him... Underswap Sans.  
  
"Blue, please. I didn't come here to answer questions; I need help!" He muttered, letting his head fall back. In his arms, a sleeping, child-version of Error lie, wrapped in the red shirt and sweater. Blue took one look at him before nodding.  
  
"Hold on, I think Papyrus kept some of our old kiddy clothes! I'll go see!" 

With that, Blue bolted off.

Whilst his enthusiastic companion was away, Ink took a moment to really take a look at what he had done to his opposite. Shifting the small thing in his arms, peeling back the much too big clothe, his mismatched eyes scanned the little body. The dark, morbid colors Error's adult self bore were now muted slightly, white peeking through. There were very few glitches flying around, even though the devastating cracks littered about could be taken for them.

He was so small... Even the weakest Sans could crush him in their grip... At least, that's what it felt like to Ink, whose power was akin to a god. All he had to do was hold a little tighter... And dust would stain his clothes.

But he didn't.

__

* * *

Blue returned, gripping a bag of clothes with a big smile. His brother followed him, without his usual cigarette in his mouth. They were chatting but stopped once they were in hearing range.

"why did you guys even keep the clothes?" Ink questioned, squirming in his spot. 

Blue shrugged," we meant to get rid of them but kept forgetting so..."

"we let 'em," Papyrus finished, tapping his pointer finger on the honey bottle in his grasp.

"I'm glad you did."

The three went quiet for s long moment before the creator moved to dress Error.

All the while, he realized how cruel it was it be called that. Error. Like a mistake. Like someone who shouldn't exist.

 

He didn't want to call the toddler that... But, of course, that brought up a moral dilemma; if he couldn't call a child Error, why would he call the adult version that?

He found that he had no good answer.

 

 


	4. A Bit of Confusion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Unfortunately, a child Error means quite a bit for the Sanses.

Ink's gaze swept over the audience of Sanses, phalanges tapping against the wood stand in front of him. While no papers occupied the slot, as they usually did, he found himself glancing down to figure out his words. Every skeleton was silent, which wasn't much considering how busy certain universes could get.

"we have a... _Small_  problem," Ink began, fumbling over his words in hopes of getting the others to somehow understand without him saying more," uh... It's about... Error."

The crowd groaned in response, many faces twisting into distaste or fear. Usually, these speeches meant that his opposite had destroyed another universe, or caused mayhem. Not this time, though.

"what'd he do now?" The original Sans called, lazily, but his eye gleamed blue.

"actually, it's more of... What I did, mostly?" The creator supplied uselessly, scratching at his head. Hums of confusion poured in as a response and, panicked, he began to mull over how to present this situation.

Only, he was distracted by the sudden silence, followed by terribly mimed airplane noises. His attention snapped to the source, watching with horror as Error made his way down the aisle towards him, gripping a paper airplane. Blue followed after, slightly sheepish as he tried to rein in the child, who wore the bright blue, fuzzy kitty PJs the older skeleton had once adored.

"I'm outtie five thousand," Fresh deadpanned, disappearing, which was followed by Horror, Dust, and a handful of others not fit for caring or seeing a kid.

"Ink, what the fu- fresh emotional baggage is this?" Sans squinted as he spoke, unsure of how to feel at watching the glitch, small and innocent, wandering down.

eventually, Error made it up to Ink, lifting his arms up with a good sized grin. Ink realized that he had a blanket tied around his shoulders, likely to help with picking up the small thing, as his fear of touch remained.

"uppie!"

Unsure, he scooped up the child, looking to the others with a low sigh.

"magic misshap? I don't know what exactly happened but, until we can reverse this, I'm going to need help. I can't take care of a kid on my own and Blue won't always be available so... Anyone here want to be potential babysitters?"

With this stated, more people instantly ported away, unwilling to deal with the strange happenings. Sans, Strawberry, Blue, and Pomegranate, or Pommy, as the other Sanses began to call Swapfell Sans, stayed. As well as Lust, strangely. Though, one disgusted look from Pommy had his face contorting to hurt before he, too, disappeared.

Ink shook his head, clambering down from he stood on the elevated, not quite a stage, surface,"thank the stars some of you want to help."

"well, as awful as he is as an adult," Sans began, only to be hit by Blue," I... Yknow what I meant. There's a chance we can change him?"

"That kiddo is gettin' ta ya, ain't they?" Strawberry's southern-esc voice tumbled into the air right after, a soft look on his face. His voice always startled Ink, who'd grown used to the simple drawl that the others, minus a few, seemed to carry.

"shut up, Berry."

This managed to get a rise out of Strawberry and Blue, whilst Pommy just rolled his eyes.

"we don't have all day!" The mismatched skeleton groaned out, causing all of them to snap back into the reality of the situation.

"right," breathed The Creator," for the most part, he'll be with Blue, since I can't bring him everywhere I go. But-"

"the resets," interjected the original.

"exactly. We can't have him there for certain runs. He's just a kid."

"so yer gonna need us ta help out, right?" The Fell questioned, just for the sake of confirmation.

Ink nodded firmly,"of course, Blue and Sans' universes are the safest, so he'll be going to those places first. If... If we can't have him there, he'll be with you or Pommy."

"so we've got to make a safe place in our homes," finished Pommy,"it won't be too hard, right? Just make a playpen and food and he'll be fine."

Ink switched Error to his other arm, causing the child to let out a soft protest. He considered what to say next, shifting his weight from one foot to the other.

"probably? He still doesn't like bone to bone contact... And won't even hold your hand with gloves on... So I think there might be some kind of trauma? I can't tell, though."

"Just 'cuz a kid don't like bein' touched doesn't mean there's trauma."

"sure. But you're kinda proof that it's extremely possible."

The dark skeleton made a face, remembering his struggles with moving on and all the terrible things he had to face. It was a miserable time for everyone involved, and he still wasn't completely alright. 

"Let's not bring that up," Blue suggest, placing a hand on the other's shoulder gently.

"right, sorry," Ink murmured, sighing again.

"let's just get this started. If he has to go to another universe, make sure you have some place for him to sleep, okay?"

With that, the rest disappeared. Ink stood alone, for just a moment, before he ported away with the child, praying that everything will be okay.

 


	5. First Time Baby Sitter

All in all, Ink had been doing well... Mostly. There was... Trouble. After all, Cross, Nightmare, Fresh, etc, etc, existed and, with a small child on his back, it was quite the adventure to fight. But he noticed Error was growing tired of this; he could hear him whimper when Ink was attacked or hear him sob when he moved wrong and, eventually, he decided to stop bringing Error everywhere with him.

he couldn't check if the child had been injured, since the poor thing would only let him touch him if he was dead asleep, which was hardly ever. 

So, he gave up. Brought him to Blue, only to find out that the Swap verse was going through a rather tough no mercy run. Before he could see the dust, Ink made his way to the original timeline. 

His appearance did not surprise either brother as he claimed a spot in the kitchen, where Sans sat on the tall counter tops and watched Papyrus cook. Ink noted, by the smell, that it was a different recipe. Of course, a smile willed upon his face. 

"Heya-"

"OH. HELLO, INKY NOT BROTHER!"

his grin widened with the greetings, a soft chuckle escaping him as he adjusted the small child in his arms, who was lightly dozing to escape saying hi.

"hello, Papyrus, Sans. Please, just call me Ink," he said, tilting his head simply because he didn't have a hand to gesture with. Every time he came here, Papyrus would insist on calling him something other than Ink, even going as far as calling him by his formal title. And, each time, Ink would insist otherwise.

"RIGHT, YES... ANYWAY, WHAT EVER COULD WE DO FOR YOU?" The tall skeleton asked, even as his gaze landed in Error.

"bro, I think we're baby sittin'," Sans paused, tapping the tip of his fingers against the counter," so's this isn't no _kid_ din' matter."

Instead of gracing that pun with anything, Papyrus ignored him in favor of examining the baby bones and asking various questions, to which Ink responded to, much to the taller's disappointment.

"sorry, Papyrus, he's not all that fond of talking," Ink finally muttered, lowering the child down. As soon as he was able to move, Error was gone in a heartbeat to explore. He fought down his anxiety about it.

"ITS QUITE ALRIGHT! I HEARD MANY INTERESTING THINGS ABOUT HIM!"

As much as he wanted to freak, he forced himself to remain calm. What exactly has Sans said about Error, child or otherwise? Was this even in the least bit a good idea?

as if sensing his hesitation, Sans slid from the counter, placing a hand on his shoulder," hey, chill, Ink. Ain't nothing going to happen. Just go do your job, Kay?"

The creator gave a small nod, anxiously wringing his hands," alright... Promise me he'll be okay?"

"I promise you," the brothers echoed.

* * *

 After Ink said his good bye to Error, the two skeletons went about finishing lunch. By that, I mean Sans lazily watching Error from the dining table while Papyrus cooked, muttering to himself about Ink's visit. The plan was to eat, then bring the small child out to buy some toys of his choice. It was mostly Papyrus' idea; in his kind, it was a great way to get Error to open up, even just a little, while gaining some trust.

and Sans agreed, as it was really a fantastic idea. He just hoped it wouldn't backfire in the least. I mean, right now, Error was just a little boy but... Well, if his gut feeling was right, something was horribly wrong with him.

...

 

heh, what was he thinking? He doesn't even have gut.

 

Error, who had slowly begun to abondon his coloring stuff, met Sans' gaze and something about it made the older skeleton feel cold. However, he shook it off, watching the kid move into the kitchen. The steps were wobbly, despite having obviously been older than the first steps age, but he was determined. For what, the adult couldn't figure out.

he managed to climb onto the counter, pointing to the pot in which the noodles boiled.

"wha's tha'?" Error asked, tilting his skull to the side. 

Papyrus tilted his head,"...THIS IS A POT? AND, INSIDE THE POT, IS SPAGHETTI NOODLES??"

The child's mouth formed an 'o', as if in understanding before scooting closer to the pot, to which both brothers watched in mute worry, and squinting at the boiling water. This reminded Sans that Error needed glasses... Right?

"wha's spag-he'ini?"

"Spaghetti," Sans corrected with amusement," and it's a meal. You'll like it."

Error tilted his head, a grin, so small, so wrong for a child, crossed his face, giving a tiny, trusting nod. Stars, he didn't realize how much pressure that brought upon him until now.

He didn't have much time to think about that as Error was whisked away by Papyrus's magic, to the table, and the clinking of silverware and plates rattled into the air. Without too much of a delay, he began helping his brother set the table and serving the pile of noodles and meat.

for a moment, he was worried the kid would suffer at the hands of Papyrus's less-than-desirable cooking. That is, until Error started downing it as if it was the best thing he's had ever, or the first meal he's had in a long time.

The knot in his 'stomach' returned. And, with one look at Papyrus, he knew that he felt the same. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> since this chapter was taking forever, I decided to just go ahead and post it as is. Sorry, y'all; it's been a rough year.


	6. Little Bones

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sans finds the perfect name for the strange child they've been saddled with. Oh, and toys are a thing.

The snow fell peacefully, further piling up against the structures of Snowdin. For Error and Sans, it was a tad too always to walk in, so Error was curled up in a sled held by Papyrus, and Sans sat on his brother's shoulders, nearly falling asleep with the slow bob of Papyrus's gait.

the three were quiet. The child behind them barely seemed to notice what was happening, as if it was just another picture flashed before his eyes instead of an experience. Small, gloved hands pressed against his small chest, the hat's Pom Pom lolled, and his scarf tugged with the wind's lonesome call. And, still, he did not react.

 

for Sans, his silence was feigned ignorance.

for Papyrus, his silence was for fear of speaking.

Then the store was coming into view, and Sans threw out some tired pun, and Error let out a weak laugh, and Papyrus huffed. And everything was relaxed.

once at the door, the tallest skeleton disposited on the cleared path and helped Error from the sled. The kid stumbled into the snow, but was saved by Papyrus' magic. 

Sans pushed through the entry, a bell chiming above his head. He was flooded with the smell of cinnabuns, cookies, and vanilla. The sweet mixture helped create Error's childish wonder expression, along with the gentle swell of classical music and the bunny monster leaning against the checkout counter.

"afternoon, darlin's," the clerk called, a smile curling upon her face cheerfully,"been slow today! Glad to see her cute faces around~!"

as usual, before the brothers could respond, she was speaking again.

"oh! What a cutie! Who is this? Oh, stars, look at those adorable lil eyes!"

Error's sockets widened and he shrunk back until he was hidden partially by Papyrus' leg, to which the owner let out a soft, adoring coo.

Sans stuffed his hands into his pockets,"we found him outside not long ago. Can't find any parents... He looked bone-tired."

"Oh my stars, how awful," she whispered, her eyes wide with surprise.

Despite the lie, it somehow felt true.

 

How terrible...

* * *

 

After some small talk, the three skeletons made their way through the store. The child was basically vibrating in excitement, running ahead before backing up like a puppy who couldn't contain itself. He'd point to things, loudly ask what it was, but leave right before the brothers could answer.

Neither minded.

How could they? Error's feverish smile was so bright, so big with curiosity. It fit on the child's face nicely, as anything so deliriously happy should on a face of a babybones.

Papyrus eventually wandered off to find some of the more important things forge young boy, like clothes that fit better, a new blanket, and some groceries. Sans, as per agreement, lazily followed Error.

"hey, lil' bones, found anything you like?" He called, watching as the grayish head bobbed around before peeking up and fixing fuzzy, mismatched eyelights on him. 

Confusion played into the mix of delight on his face,"...lil' bones...?"

"yeah," Sans neared the kid, his gaze moving to the shelves," lil' bones. That's you, kiddo... I mean, if you want."

Error repeated the nickname to himself before nodding firmly, as if adoring the sound of it. He liked it better than Error, which rung so strangely to him, like something was off. Severely so, anyway. But the child can't place emotions like that, especially with such limited amount of understanding of the world so he just shrugged it off. 

"anyway, did you find some toys you like?"

There was another pause before the little body took off, far too fast for the tired adult to keep track of. Which, in the end, it didn't matter, as the newly dubbed Little Bones came sprinting back, gripping a small mound of items. He plopped onto the shiny, tiled floor, dumping it all into his lap. Sans watched as muted yellow and red fingers picked out each item, presenting it to him, before placing them onto the floor neatly. With each one, Sans commented on why each one was absolutely perfect, to which the child looked all the more happier about.

The chosen toys, while older and picked up from the dump, or just handmade by the owner, were well cared for. There was a teddy bear, which had one of the button eyes replaced with an intricately craved metal one, and patches on the belly and arm. Three toy soldiers, the plastic slightly bent and discolored, a plastic airplane, colored blue with cracked wings, a bag of chipped building blocks, and a wooden, painted doll, which had peeling paint and dirty clothes, but managed to somehow be endearingly cute followed after the teddy. Due to all of the issues with them, they were marked down below usual prices for toys and, while money hadn't been on Sans' mind at the time, he certainly found himself liking how little these were going to dent his wallet.  
  
"Alright, kiddo, let's go find Paps. Then, we'll go home and play with these bad boys, kay?" Sans grinned, herding Little Bones off to the check-out. Not-so-surprisingly, Papyrus was already there, gripping recyclable bags in each hand. Two of them were over-flowing with clothes, while the rest was filled with the brim with food. Sans could see a package of cinnabuns peeking out from one of them, and he had to resist the urge to laugh. Papyrus always did have a soft spot for children...

 

After paying for the toys, and the clerk giving Little Bones a free lollipop, they were on their way back. Little Bones was in the sled again, with the bags, the teddy bear in his lap and the airplane extended in the air. Muffled by his sweet treat, his mimicked airplane sounds were nearly lost upon them. Sans was piggyback riding again, keeping an eye out for the babybones in the back, while Papyrus just focused on walking. The snow was still falling, but it had picked up speed, likely an early warning for a snowstorm approaching their little town. 

Most footsteps from the other townsfolk had disappeared with the new layer of powdery white. Smoke from fireplaces rose and twirled towards the ceiling, warm orange pouring from windows, casting pillow-y glows upon the snow and icicles. Artificial night was beginning to fall, gently engulfing the area. As they passed Grillby's, the sweet sound of laughter, hearty drinking, and badly-sang music spilled past the glass door, faint yet utterly perfect to tie into a good night.

He was tempted to ask Papyrus if they could bring Little Bones there, but decided that the next visit would be better. Right now, they needed to help him get settled.

Mirroring what he did at the entrance to the shop, Papyrus placed both smaller skeletons onto the porch and handed them the groceries. After making sure everything was there, and Little Bones was doing alright, he ran off with the sled. Sans led the child back inside into the warmth, shedding their coats after putting the bags in the kitchen. Error's stuff was put into the little play-area they set up, which included a small bed made from spare pillows and blankets, as well as a cardboard box, while Sans' was half-hazardously tossed to the couch. He could hear his brother kicking snow from his boots as he put away food, leaving out whatever Papyrus needed for tonight's dinner. 

Soon, they were all relaxed, with the kid watching movies on the TV, Sans keeping his eye on him again, and Papyrus making dinner. 

 

Today was a good day, he thought, his gaze flicking from Little Bones to the TV with a soft smile. Sure, he was tired, and he was still worried, but today was good. And that's all he could really ask for.

 

Let's hope the night goes on without a hitch.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this chapter was oddly extremely hard to write? Goodness, let's hope for something better next chapter.


	7. Fearful Guardians

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Pondering a child's past brings about an overwhelming sadness to those who wish to protect them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ~1,094 words

Darkness bathed the room, turning objects to shadows that, if he were a child, would become cruel creatures.

 

Somehow, even in his age, they almost feel like they were coming to eat him.

 

Sans wasn’t sure what woke him up. For a moment, everything was silent, nothing breaking the constant of night’s hum. Then, there was a soft sobbing, muffled by the closed door and the distance. He peeled himself from his lumpy mattress, pushing aside of the ball of blankets and sheets. The garbage tornado had slowed, the trash gently clashing and tumbling. But he ignored the familiarity, opening the door.

 

Naturally, the sobs were louder now. His soul twisted.

Papyrus was in the hall, having been awakened by the cries, as well. The brothers shared concerned looks before the taller one made his move down the steps. Sans remained, now looking down from the balcony.

Papyrus settled by the makeshift bed, the TV’s faint rumble accompanying its clutter. The sniffles and whimpers swam over the hum. He could see the small, trembling body, which now lie bare from his blankets.

“Error?” Papyrus whispered.

 

In response, he got a scream.

 

He glanced up to Sans with a panicked look, but only got a nervous thumbs up in return.

“Little Bones,” he tried again,”you’re okay. Shhh…. It was just a dream… It can’t hurt you…”

Little Bones hiccuped, squirming, but no longer screaming. Papyrus scooted closer cautiously, grabbing the teddy from its resting spot.

“Little Bones, Mr. Teddy wants a hug. He doesn’t like seeing you cry…”

The body slowly turned to face him, a hand, shaking, like an earthquake braced against the tiny surface, reaching for the bear. Seeing the tears shining morbidly in the dim lighting, Papyrus found himself feeling sick.

The child snatched the toy, holding it close to his chest,”Mr. Pah.”

Papyrus gave a small smile, triumph in this small victory,”yes, sorry. We haven’t formally met. Will he tell me something about himself?”

“Mr. Pah doesn’t talk much. He says the doctor doesn’t like it,” the child murmured tiredly.

 

“The doctor?”

 

“The doctor likes pointy things and the bad bed. Can’t move on the bad bed. Hurts.”

 

There was a soft gasp, a shudder before another sob ripped from his mouth.

 

Papyrus realized what it felt like to be stabbed in the soul.

 

“Well,” he said meekly,”the doctor isn’t here. Just you, me, and Mr. Pah.”

After his statement, Little Bones’ sniffling bubbled into uneasy breathes, then into wheezy, slow puffs.

With the child asleep, Papyrus checked over the play area, in case of Little Bones’ fear caused magic attacks to appear.

 

He pretended the scorch marks weren’t as bad as they seemed.

* * *

The morning hit Sans like a ton of bricks. Or, to be more accurate, a pile of bones.

 

One moment he was fast asleep. The next, his eyes were on Ink, who had collapsed on top of him. Paint ran down his bones and onto the bed.

“I’m not cleaning that up.” Ink said.

Sans pushed him onto the floor with a grunt,”rude.”

 

The two snickered softly.

 

After a few lazy sighs, trips, and struggled groans, both Sanses were finally downstairs. The sweet smell of pancakes filled the air like water filling a container. The change made Sans nearly freeze, but the pleasant surprise pulled him into the kitchen with a small smile.

“Morning, bro,” Sans said with a pleased hum. Before him, Papyrus had Error on the counter. The taller skeleton was in his apron, as per usual, and he had, with grand gestures, explaining to the quiet, yet excited, child on how to make pancakes.

He turned on the balls of his feet upon hearing Sans,”Good morning, brother! Good morning, Inky-Not-Brother!”

Sans watched Error’s face light up before climbing off the counter and rushing to Ink with a happy cry. Ink was smiling so wide, Sans thought his face would split in half.

“Hey buddy,” The creator exclaimed before addressing the other two,” he wasn’t any trouble, was he?”

“No, not at all! Little Bones was an utter delight!”

Ink’s sockets widened, eyelights changing shape before settling on something vaguely fuzzy with a warm glow. He clasped his hands together,”thank you. It looks like he had fun.”

 

Before much less could be said or done between the adults, Little Bones was determinedly marching away, gesturing wildly for the creator to follow him. And, really, with a smile like that, Ink just couldn’t bring himself to refuse the order.

While the excited child showed off his toys and new clothes, Sans and Papyrus stayed in the kitchen.

Sans watched the cheerfulness melt from his brother’s face, watched as fear and worry revealed themselves. The bitter sweetness of this very concept stabbed into Sans’ chest and soul, sinking into his misery’s newest flame. This look would be one that he’d never forget, no matter how many resets occured.

 

“Little Bones worries me,” Papyrus murmured, pulling the pan from the burner. The smell of pancakes still wafted after it, but it did little to improve the sudden sullen mood.

“What did he say?” Sans asked. He thought back to last night; the soft sobs and whimpers really the only thing he could hear. He saw the transaction, too, but nothing else had reached his ‘ears’ and his watchful gaze from the balcony.

Papyrus sighed lowly,”something about a doctor? He started crying when I asked??”

 

That feeling returned in his nonexistent stomach, curling sickeningly inside his bones.

 

“That’s…” He trailed off, choking on a vert-much-not-there lump in his throat,” that’s definitely a, uh, thing…?”

The noise of their conversation died as Papyrus gathered plates. The brothers shared a wary look.

 

Bitterly, without a word, they both wondered what they’d learn about the skeleton that created despair. Bitterly, they wondered who would hurt a child to create such a monstrosity.

* * *

 

.

.

.

.

 

Magic throbbed and arched dangerously across the surface. The earth shuddered and groaned, cracking under the pressure of the pale, magical energy. Monsters and humans alike cried out in terror, some swallowed whole by the ground’s opening maw, some disappearing into flames from collapsing houses, others running to escape the fate their would had seemingly planned for them.

 

But you can’t stop the inevitable, can you?

 

More magic poured like lava from the cracks. Within mere minutes, the burning flow finished off the rest of the creatures. Not long after, the entirety of the world was pure white.

 

With a flash, it disappeared.

 

A ripple echoed emptily into the multiverse.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright, so, I'm trying to update every Tuesday, yknow? I'm crappy with schedules, but it'll do this work some good, huh? Also, my aim is at least 1,000 words or more per update, so I hope I can reach that every time. The other series I keep saying I'm going to start might also update on Tuesday, but every other week. And that's if I can get off my lazy ass and write it. This one's going to continue to be my priority, though.
> 
> As for Lovers' Stories, I won't put myself on a schedule but, since I won't have a word goal in mind, it'll probably update more regularly. Maybe. One-shots are surprisingly hard to keep writing.


	8. Dull

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ink understands what it means to be dull.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ~2,000 words

Ink was with Blue when he felt a sharp, throbbing pain clawing into his ribcage. The sudden searing agony brought him to his knees, a broken gasp of what might have been a scream if the feeling hadn’t stolen away his breath, which the remainder burst from his teeth with ragged, irregular puffs.

He could see the blurry figure of Blue stagger, could hear Little Bones’ feeble wail. Magic filled the air, static filling skulls, magic that didn’t belong to any one skeleton within the house-turned-cage’s walls. The white noise swelled in a crescendo, a chorus of _wrong_ seeping into the song before… nothing. The walls had melted away into white, and the cries of his friends and charge had disappeared.

Nothingness didn’t feel right to describe where he stood now.

Blue. There was blue. Blue strings, tethered to a non-existent ceiling. Error’s strings. He could see the dolls now, swinging lazily, along with different souls, all varying colors that stood out against the whiteness of the Anti-Void.

 

Or, at least, they should have.

Everything was so… dull. The strings usually seemed to glow but, now, they seemed dead, pulsating miseribly. He followed the mess of tangled thread, weaving and ducking to narrowly avoid itself, the cluster of lonely dolls, mimicking real life, and souls hanging heavily every few steps. The smiles sewn into fabric had gone, leaving tearful frowns. Many were strung up by their necks, rather than their arms.

And he came upon something that held the _wrongness_. The heart of this web of morbid, broken dreams; a soul of dark blue, glitched and cracked. Error’s soul.

 

And then he was back in Blue’s living room, and Blue was leaning against a wall, gagging. Little Bones was weeping on the couch, which was covered in the child’s sick, and Papyrus was up against the railing upstairs, skull tilted to the side as he groaned.

Ink used himself up with a grunt, rubbing his sternum through his clothes. Slowly, he made his way to Little Bones, lifting the kid up, who continued to weep.

“What happened?” Blue wheezed out, finally righting himself. He caught sight of the couch but choose to simply ignore it for the time being. The room spun still.

“I don’t know,” The Creator admitted lowly,”but I need to find out.”

 

No more words were exchanged. Little Bones was deposited into Blue’s arms, and Ink was gone, soon replaced by his brother.

 

Papyrus’ face contorted to a frown,” I have a bad feeling about this.”

“As do I, Papyrus,” Blue said,” as do I.”

* * *

 

Once everything was cleaned up, and Little Bones was calmed down, they him on the couch for a nap. Blue was fixing breakfast, some oatmeal with peaches, and Paps was texting Alphys about their recent charge, dodging questions like he was in battle.

The silence was awkward, stretching out and consuming the usually loud house. The only thing that broke it was the quiet clicks of utensils and bones on hard plastic.

Slowly, Papyrus entered the kitchen, tossing the cell onto the counter. He watches his brother pour the meal into bowls.

“Alphys wants us to come in still, doesn’t she?” Blue asked, grabbing spoons in a fluid movement.

“Ya guessed it, bro,” Papyrus replied,”she says that she’ll let us go early, though. She also wants you to talk to the queen.”

Blue smiled lowly,” what’s her excuse now?”

“‘Dyne’s sick.”

The two laughed quietly. Alphys never liked to give progress reports, always said they were too slow-going and often times useless.

 

They took a moment to revel in this sweet peacefulness of domestic life; the gentleness of the quiet, the breath of breakfast, the buzz of contented magic…  
The snoring of the child in the other room made it all the more perfect.

“I’ll take Little Bones,” Blue murmured, still marveling about how _easy_ it was to fall into the use of the name.

“Ya sure?” Papyrus asked,” a kiddo might complicate things.”

Blue smiled,”she’d adore him.”

Papyrus’ expression shifted into understand as his little brother disappeared into the living room.

 

Blue woke Little Bones as gently as he could, using Mr. Pah, having learned the name from a text from the original Papyrus, to help his endeavour. Still, despite the gentleness of his actions, the child had jumped awake as if stung. But, before he could feel the bubbling worry flood him, Little Bones had his small, thin arms around his teddy and a bright look in his eyes.

“Good morning, starshine!” Blue cooed,”food’s ready!”

“Wha’ is i’?”

After a moment Blue took to understand what the child had said (what is it?), he spoke again,” oatmeal and peaches!”

Even though the curious, confused look grew concern, he couldn’t help but be amused by it. Or, at the very least, happy that he and the others would teach these little things about life to him

“Don’t worry, Little Bones. You’ll like it.”

He didn’t bother grabbing the kid’s hand, just stood and led him to the kitchen. He could hear the soft pitter patter of bare-boned feet behind him, unsteady but determined.

 

This child was much too cute for Blue’s soul.

Papyrus was in his chair now, phone tucked into his pocket, which released a chime as Blue helped Little Bones into his seat.

After reteaching the child to use a spoon, the three began to eat. Little Bones ate quickly, making a general mess, which no one really cared about, if they were being honest.

 

Once things were cleaned (again), the adults wished each other a good day with a fleeting touch. Ever since the adult Error had taken Blue, which both remembered with sickening sadness, they made sure to tell each other how much he loved him and to be safe. And, really, the ritual never hurt.

Blue walked through the snow slowly, adjusting his rarely used waistcoat. He could feel little Bones gripping it as they pushed forward. People chatted around them, some calling out to Blue but, aside from a quick ‘hello’ and ‘how are you’, he didn’t engage in further conversation. He was on a mission and the monsters in the little village knew well that he was focused in on that, though they never knew _what_ his mission was.

He approached the Riverperson’s boat with tunnel vision. Event he crunching of snow beneath his feel disappeared in favor of trudging ever closer to the rocking, wooden object that had become his goal.

Blue’s laser focus shattered by a confused, murky question aimed at him. He snapped his head to the speaker. Upon recognizing Muffet, a smile crawled onto his face.

 

The water splashed against the bank.

 

“Hello, Muffet!” He exclaimed,”I didn’t hear your question, sorry. Could you repeat that?”

Now that he really noticed her, Blue found himself lost. Her typical suit was gone, replaced with a stylish black dress that ended above her knees. Her hair had been pulled in a bun and a purse hung down from her shoulder, dark purple glimmering beside the short but lovely coat. Was she going on a date?

“I just asked what brings you to the Riverperson. You usually walk to Alphys’.”

Blue blinked slowly, shifting his weight from one foot to the other. Then, he moved so his little charge was revealed, despite the child’s obvious displeasure at the very idea of having to face someone. He could feel little Bones’ grasp on his coat tighten with nervousness.

 

Muffet’s mouth formed an ‘o’, all five of her eyes widening.

“It’s a… child,” she murmured.

Blue chuckled lowly,”yeah. We, um, found him. In the woods. I decided to take him with me to the palace.”

“Oh. You’re going to Queen Toriel, aren’t you?”

"yep," Blue said, popping the 'p',"Ally is taking car of 'Dyne 'cuz she's sick."

"uh-huh..." the woman responded, drawing out the sound with a hint of understanding.

...

"So why didn't you leave the child with Papyrus?"

"Little Bones would get bored. Plus, Ms. Queen Toriel likes children, right?" He couldn't help but widen his smile at the mention of the queen. Of the, admittedly, few friends he had in this universe, she was one of the closest. He didn't mind telling her things he couldn't even admit to Alphys.

Both adults snapped out of their conversation, which had dived into contemplative silence, as the Riverperson began to sing. Blue looked to the boat, spotting the very kid he was to watch now inside the water-bound vehicle. He was nestled between the back and the last bench, swimming in his coat and scarf. The low, sweet voice of the Riverperson danced elegantly in the small clearing, a melody of something vaguely sad, vaguely  _lonely_ , but only just a pinch of these familiar emotions swirled within the otherwise peaceful notes.

A lullaby. It was a lullaby. ~~A song Blue once knew.~~  

Muffet and Blue moved to the boat, dropping three coins for the fee into the bucket attached to the front seat. They both settled into the back, just in front of Little Bones.

The boat began slowly, as to not jostle the child, presumably.

"so, Muffet," Blue began after a moment of silence," you're dressed up nicely. Do you have a date?"

He watched the usually stoic bartender flush and cough into one of her hands. Naturally, this caused him to grin coyly.

She was nearly inaudible," perhaps I do."

"Oh! My! Stars!" He exclaimed, visibly alight with excitement," Who is it? Where are you going? Are they nice?"  
"Oh, um," her shy smile made itself known," it's a blind date so I don't know. We... We have reservations at NTT's restaurant."

He beamed," sounds like you're in for a treat, then! Have fun, Muffet."

The conversation died out again, this time less jarring and more relaxed. Blue and Little Bones for off in Hotlands to pick up the paperwork, which revealed that Undyne was actually sick, so Alphys simply stuffed the documents into his hands without looking and disappeared into the lab again.

one more boat trip and an easy trek through the least crowded roads later, the two skeletons were safely in the grand hall before the throne room. The child behind him seemed to have vanished, though, when checking behind him, he still found him there. Little Bones did not breath, blink, or move. 

He snapped out of it when, a moment later, the doors swung open with help from two guards. Blue led Little Bones to the queen, feeling more confident, even as the child grew shier.

Toriel was settled among the flowers, a wooden stool serving as little table. Her fingers curled around a ceramic cup, steam twisting in the air to signal the warmth of her tea. Her cloak fell around her, the heavy silk concealing the majority of her body. 

An image of something peaceful; an image that Blue marveled in and found his soul calm with.

Her eyes fluttered open and a smile met her lips," Ah, Sans. What a pleasant surprise."

Blue chuckled softly, knowing that she had prepared for his arrival. In fact, his favorite cup sat opposite of her, already filled.

"Good morning, Ms. Toriel." He murmured, moving to settle at the stool. Little Bones followed shlyly, movements  ~~ａｖｏｉｄｉｎｇ~~ careful of the flowers.

"Oh," Toriel whispered," who is this?"

"...m' name's Lil' Bones."

Blue felt pride swell in his soul at the child's soft voice. Honestly, even if Little Bones hadn't tried to speak to Toriel, Blue would have been proud anyway. Little Bones felt like his child. Maybe not his alone, but still his.

His little boy...

Toriel smiled sweetly at the child, warm, honeyed brown eyes sparkling in delight," Well, Little Bones, it is a pleasure to meet you!"

She held out her hand for him to shake, but Little Bones simply stared at the fluffy paw.

Toriel took it in stride, pulling back and placing both hands in her lap.

"Shall we begin?"

 

 


	9. The Thing About Naivety

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Blue spends a lot of quality time with Little Bones.

The meeting didn’t start right away, despite what the queen had said. The two spent time nervously chattering, just trying to get into a comfortable atmosphere. The presence of Little Bones made discussion of the matters of the kingdom seem way too… dark or for adults. Not to mention, the child refused to move away from Blue once he had settled, staring at the yellow flowers as though their stems and roots would crawl up and swallow him whole. However, this brought to attention that there wasn’t much to really talk about between Blue and Toriel; every day was the same, a pattern that always held true.

 

Well, not quite. But resets don’t really count, huh?

 

Eventually, though, they gave up on small talk. The throne room felt suffocating, despite its massive size. So, with some difficulty, they moved into the cabin-esc portion of the castle, finding their place in the living room. Blue forced himself to pretend he didn’t notice Little Bones’ attempt to avoid the flowers again.

The living room was homey, the fireplace alight with a gentle flame. The tea had been moved to the scruffed up coffee table, now joined by snacks for the three. The rocking chair was moved closer to the table and couch for a proper meeting. The room was attached to a quaint kitchen and a hallway to person rooms, in which Toriel had disappeared into to gather toys for Blue’s charge.

Blue wasn’t dumb. He played the part to a tee. Acting as though naivety was his only feature, that he was clueless to the world’s faults, that not all the toys in which the queen gave to Little Bones had belonged to the royal children. The toys ranged from dress-up clothes and dolls to action figures and cars. Many of which had not interested Frisk and MK. Oh, no.

Blue had to guard those souls before. His own had ached by the very thought of those poor humans…

But, faced with extinction, population rapidly dwindling, and sickness running rampant, the lonesome queen had very few choices and, though not quite an excuse, her kingdom must come first.

At the very least, those children felt love before passing.

 

The adults settled into place, Toriel sitting delicately in her recliner, robe removed and Blue stretched out on the couch, though he barely took up one cushion.

Without her signature robe, Blue could see she was dressed up as well. A dress shirt, made of silk, tucked into slacks, coal black. The shirt had ruffles at the neck and careful stitching along the left hand side to create flowers blooming up her torso in chaotic beauty. A silver chain poked from the collar, a pendent which sparkled with a single stone made itself known and, now that he was paying attention, he noticed her fur had been neatly brushed into waves of soft white and her claws had been painted black.

Blue grinned,”blind date?”

“Oh! How’d you know?” Toriel asked, her head tilting to the side, a faint blush on her cheeks.

“I think I met your date on the way here,” the skeleton replied,”I think you’ll like her.”

The two shared a look, Toriel’s baffled and Blue’s almost mischievous and smug.

Blue glanced to his charge, watching him for a moment before getting back to business. He skimmed the documents one last time and cleared his throat.

“According to this, there’s not much to report. Nothing about humans coming from the ruins or nothing… But there have been reports of tremors, especially in Hotland and Waterfall. Magic spikes from the CORE, too. Undyne believes there might be a connection. There hasn’t been any damage dealt to these areas, but they seem to be getting stronger.”

She took in the news slowly, nodding as each made a connection in her mind.

“I will have to speak to Undyne and Alphys on these matters. I am thinking we will need to make new pathways and fortify what we can, especially around the river,” she murmured.

Blue nodded almost, almost absently. His gaze once more wandered to Little Bones. Despite being trained on him, it took the queen’s worried hum to notice that the child was not playing. Rather, staring blankly at the toys. Mr. Pah was collapsed against the wall with a purple and yellow themed action figure spread against the bear’s tummy and legs. A pile of monkeys stood near the bear, their barrel on its side with a slightly broken doctor barbie doll discarded near it. And the kid was just staring, mismatched eyes glazed over, arms limp by his side, jaw slack.

Blue blinked, and then Little Bones was staring at him.

The child did not speak, did not move. He looked like a man on trial.

Blue felt like he was the jury, about to condemn an innocent man to life in hell.

He pulled himself from the couch, stretching,”I think Little Bones is getting kind of tired. I am very sorry, Tori. There’s more in the report; I’ll leave it for you.”

“Oh,” Toriel replied, monotone,”...I would like to speak to you real fast in the kitchen.”

The small skeleton blinked owlishly before nodding, muttering to his charge to pick up the toys and return them, as well as pack up his own. Then, he moved with his friend to the kitchen. He had no chance to speak, as Toriel was turning with an expression that made Blue feel as though he were made of stone.

“That child,” She began,” he is not… normal, is he?”

“Pardon-?”

He was cut off swiftly,”-he’s not… a normal skeleton, I mean. I do not know much about your species, other than your similarity to humans and your strange stats. What has happened to his bones? Why does he stare at people as though they will destroy him with a simple look? Where on earth did you find him?”

Blue felt overwhelmed with the amount of questions, his head spinning in an attempt to give an answer, spitting out the first that came to mind,”I haven’t the slightest clue.”

She looked at him with a prompt for more.

“...We found him in the woods. By Papyrus’ station. We don’t know what happened to him. We don’t know why his bones are gray. We… we don’t know much of anything.”

Toriel nodded slowly,”...he reminds me of Frisk, somewhat. They had that same stare.”

Their gazes met, a mournful taste in the air, as they wept in the names of children who lost, of children who looked at everyone as though they would be killed with a glance

__.

 

They stopped to get burgers at the NTT emporium before returning to the house with no incidents. Unlocking the door, Blue called out to his brother, finding the place empty and silence as his response.

“Alright, Little Bones!” Blue started, putting his hands on his hips,” go put Papy’s dinner in the fridge and we’ll color, okay?”

The child took in the words slowly, taking the time to remember what and where the fridge was before grinning and taking off to the kitchen. Blue watched him fondly for a few seconds and then began gathering what was needed for their artistic endeavours.

He heard the fridge door open and close and Little Bones bound into the room. He took one look at the crayons and pencils and immediately grew excited; so much so that, within a blink of an eye, he was at the coffee table, grabbing a piece of paper while Blue was just about to gesture him over.

In this moment, he recalled Error’s ability to teleport and resisted a groan. Being one of the few Sanses who did not have this power was annoying and the idea of having a child who could move faster than he could run made it much worse. Nonetheless, he slid down and got his own paper, picking up a pencil and began to draw.

Now, Blue knew he wasn’t all that great at art. His skills were sub-par, but he enjoyed it very much. There was something calming about putting graphite to paper and creating something.

He wondered if Error had ever felt the same sentiment. He remembered the glitch’s disdain for creation- often times, Blue’s very existence had disgusted him. Few things escaped his scrutiny and hatred, not even Error himself. In fact, if there was someone Error hated more than anything else, it was himself.

 

Why did Error feel so _strongly_ about that?

 

Did Little Bones feel the same?

 

Blue paused, realizing his thoughts had consumed him, leaving his hand to lazily darken a circle. He adjusted his pencil and peeking over Little Bones’ shoulder.

Children didn’t have the best artwork, generally. The idea of ‘fine detail’ was lost upon the excitement to just _draw_. Similarly, Little Bones’ work was unsteady and wild, weird shapes and awkward lines with either enough weight to nearly tear the paper or with too little to see.

The kid himself had zoned out, gazing at the front door with that strange intensity that children should not bear. The crayon was poised neatly above the paper, hovering above the end of a line.

Despite the heavy implications of a child lost and a drawing with distated lines, the work itself was very cheerful. He recognized Mr. Pah’s patches and ears, though the bear was much bigger, towering above two figures and bathed in orange. The other two figures were purple and blue respectively. The blue was short and fat with a neck ornament of some kind, while the purple, much smaller than the blue, had two triangles.

It wasn’t too hard to figure out the figures, the short and fat one being Blue, and the purple one Little Bones.

Blue tapped the table, causing Little Bones to turn to the sound.

“What’s on your head?” Blue asked, smiling. The child eyed him for a little but before grinning, as well. He rushed off to his things. He pulled out a sweater and came back, presenting it proudly. One hand came up, pressing mismatched fingers into the cat ears on the hood.

“It’s m’ favorite…” Little Bones declared with a conviction only children and lovers could have.

“Yeah, I liked that one, too.” Blue chuckled, warmth twirling into his soul.

He closed his eyes and, for a minute, wondered at the strangeness of _this_.

Blue never knew he could harbor so much love for someone.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

~~And, really, how cruel is that?~~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 1757 words
> 
> By the way, I want to say that I do read your guys' comments! Each and every one. I just always see them too late and I feel really nervous about responding, or I don't know how. So, yeah. Thank you guys for commenting. It's keeping me going with this story!


	10. scream for me, the sweet horror whispered

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> D̶͉̺̞͐̃O̷̬̎͆͝Ṅ̵̘̗͈̘̏̍'̶̩̯̯̍͝t̷̻͍̽́̌̅ ̵̛̺͐̅Y̴̰͖̌̔͊͝o̶̱̕Ǘ̸̗̖̦͌̅ ̷͖͔̥̓͌̄̕ͅc̷͎̬̣̙̽̂͐̆A̴̝̯͖͌r̷̠̈́ë̵̖͈͙̣̉̕?̷̣͉̆̈̕͜ ̶̨̙͝d̵̮͙̳͊͊o̶̝͒Ņ̴̩̹̥̋̏'̵͙̬̆̆̅͠T̸͍̫̤̍̆ ̸̤̟͚̣͊y̷̤̼̎̐͝͝o̸̢̭̹̊͐̈́̂ǘ̸͓̜̯̲͝ ̷̡̖̣̣̈́L̶̫̗̿̀̓͝O̴̮͌̎͜V̴̟̘̤͒͆̎͆E̷͕̖̙̿̊̚ ̵̨̣̰̕͜m̸̱̉̓͘̚Ȇ̴̢̬̞͉̋,̴̧̡̰̞̿ ̸̱͖̽ś̵͇͙̣̠͗Ō̶̟̚͝,̷̼̝̐ͅ ̸̡̛̤̻̺̍̐s̵̲̬̦̎O̴͚͐̀ ̶̨̧͚m̸͎͍̹͔̕u̴̢̬̲̰͒͘c̴̢͈̯̟̽͆h̴̙͉̝̃͒̒?̶̧̜̥͕̚  
> ̸͕͓̉͋̒  
> ̶̳̣̍̓L̴̡̈́E̵͔̖̰̾T̶̻͎̮̅̓̍'̶̡̙͖̩̉̔̽S̵̨̥̰͝ ̷̛̂͂̅ͅp̸̩̻̼̲̉̚l̴̑͜͠Ä̵͖̝́Y̸̳̭̼̆ ̸͖́͗͛P̷̭̭̪̓̓r̵͔̿͛E̶̫̦͐T̴̡̠͖̈̇̉͘͜Ę̵͍͈͑͑͝N̷̨̛͇̱̂͠d̷̟̲̥͉̎̓;̶̢̼̲̂ ̵͈ͅͅd̴̪͕͍͇̐̈́̂i̷̡͊s̵͊͆̅͜͝g̸̹̲̈́͂Ú̴̫͍I̷̢͉͈̅s̴̱͌͂͝E̴͇͓̓ ̸̖͕̓̈́̊̚Ȳ̶̭̻̱o̴͕͌̏U̸̳̞̒̐͝R̶̨̲͇̅ ̸͍̃͋N̵̫̳̤̿Į̸̞̞̐͂͝G̸̤̟̏̃̕͝H̴͙̰͙̄̓T̴͎̝̟̏͜Ṃ̸̡͇͛͗͂͒ą̵͕͓̰̍͂̾͆r̵̩̻̬̮̽͆͋͂E̵̳̞̻̍͂S̵̨̛̆͆̿ ̵̡̬̻͋̍̈̕a̶̱̥̰̻̋S̴̝̹̒͌́ ̸̨͎̍ͅl̶̤̩̉ỹ̵̱I̷̤͍͋Ṇ̶͙͓͕̏g̸͕̈͠ ̷̦̎d̸̨̨͒r̸̠̠̠͍͑̈͠E̸͕̙͙̒a̸̱̾͐m̶̤̖͎̒̍̅S̴̜̝̒.̷͚̙̬̼͗

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter isn't even a chapter. It's just an edgy dream sequence.

Little Bones was fast asleep when Ink returned.

The room was quiet, the only noise being produced by the child, who found a single couch cushion to be suitable for his sleeping domain. 

Ink took a moment to watch Little Bones. His chest rose and fell steadily, his mouth opened just enough for a small amount of drool to dribble out, his sockets closed and face relaxed. The cushion eh rested upon was built upon with several blankets, creating a nest that the child had buried himself in, using a sheet to cover the rest of his body. Pillows propped up his head, one gripped in his arms along with Mr. Pah. The rest of his toys were lying on the floor under him, neatly arranged rest them on another pillow and tucked under hand towels. Even his plane was put to rest. The creator chuckled fondly at the scene.

He scoured the area for the owners of said house.

Papyrus stood at the doorway to the kitchen. He had a blank look about him, poised there stiffly like a doll. And he stared, and stared, and stared, and screamed, and **S C R E A M E D** -

 

 

 

 

 

lIttLE bOnes WAs FASt aslEEp wHEn F-f̵̟̎-̴̩̰̙̠̪̖̭̒͑̈̎̆̈́̎͠F̶̛̘̼͉͎̹͛͗̓͆͆̂  ~~Failure~~

                                                                        when Ink returned.

tHE rOOm waS

 

L̵̫͉͕̞̩͔͎̤̰̯̮͍̗̊Ỏ̷̢̡̺̞͉̣̪̥̞͖̗͖̻͍̰͍͓̜̗̃͐̉́͊̆̿̀̃̂͊̅͊͑̍͂̾̐͊̂̿̈́̆͘͘̕̚͘͜͜͝͝͠U̷̻̖̪̽̿̿̍̒̄̾̌̌̽̊̓̒̀̑̌̎͌́͒͘Ḑ̸̧̞̬̮̜̘̞̜̭͕̮͓̩̯̱̼̖̳̟̬̹͈̼̠̮̭̳̲̼̟̂̈́͊̎̽̐̄͆̕͠ͅͅ 

 

quiet, the only noise being produced by

 

**~~SCrEaMS~~**

 

~~**w̷̡̤̒͆̑̕̚Ḧ̴̞̩͈́̅Y̷͉̜̙͈͎̝̼̺͠ ̵̢̧̮̪͙̘͎͑̓̎̌̈́̉̒̚͠D̵̨̛̠̭̠̥̈́̿̕Ḭ̵̤̈́͂̓́̃͗̽̅͘d̵̛̖͊̍͋̂̈́̅̈̈́̄͝n̷̳̟̥̼͈͑͐̔̾̋̈́́̚͘͠͠ͅ'̴̨͈̜̦̘̝̪̯̄͋T̸̡̡̢̙̠͓͔̼͎̪̭͝ͅ ̸͎̦͙͙͉̤͉͎̀̈̿̇̍̾͌̐͐̉͠͝Y̶͓͚͖̘̬̬̅͑̈́̎̏͐͜͠Ơ̴̢̺̙̹̱̖͉̞̹͎͔͒͂̂͜͠ṵ̵͔̩̜̩̻̰̙̰̺̠͑̅̊̅͆̌͌́̂̒͜͠ ̶͈̥̟̰͇̖͕̝̞̙̉̊̅̓͗͌̄̈́̓̕͘k̸͇̾̽̒̓͑̽̃̚͠͝͠i̸̢̢̨̨̪͉̲͓̞͔͚̒̐̅̀͠ͅL̶̢̨̰͙̰͇̖̗̞̥̆͆͜͜l̷̨̫͍̣̂̄͐̏̈́̓̏̒̌̓ ̶͓͓̱̺̓̉̈m̸̨̡̼̜̟̣̮̣̪̘̏͛̚e̷̖̼̲̲͓̯̻̻͊̉́͜?̷̲͓̣̚͜** ~~

 

Error. Error. Error.

PLEASE RESTART THE SYSTEM

Little Bones was dead when Ink returned. The room was quiet, the only sound produced by Error, heaving as his hands brought down a bone attack where his younger self had once stood. Sobs broke up breathing, drowned by the harsh impact of the magic, glitching and flickering miserably as their wielder killed memories too harsh to think about.

Blue and Stretch's dust played dress up with the mold, wearing skins that the particles didn't own.

 

 

Ink screamed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Things under zalgo text:  
> don't you care? don't you love me so, so much?   
> let's play pretend; disguise your nightmares as lying dreams.
> 
> loud  
> why didn't you kill me?


	11. Waiting Room

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Fear holds more power than they'd like to think

Papyrus came home late at night, cold following him in like a cloak. Little Bones tucked under his blankets, tiny body barely taking up one cushion. Blue was on the other cushion, staring blankly at the TV, the picture fading into static with every howl of the wind.  He did not seem to notice, with his hands in his lap and eyelights fuzzy.

The door closed and Blue finally looked up, his eyes focusing once more.

"I was worried." Blue whispered.

"I know," Papyrus murmured," I promise you, it was important."

The two stared at one another.

"Should I wake him?" Blue asked, nodding to their charge.

Papyrus began gathering the child's things," let's wait until everything's packed. I called up Strawberry; he'll take him for the night."

The smaller skeleton nodded slowly, pulling himself up from the couch and helping his older brother," were they really attacking?"

"they came out of the ruins with that  ~~~~ _face_ , but I didn't see if they hurt anyone. I just want to be safe."

Blue nodded again, turning back to his work. He focused on the toys, while his brother gathered clothes, stuffing them into a drawstring bag and a backpack, respectively. The silence made Blue choke, so thick that air struggled to do its job.

"Papyrus... is it really the human who does this? No one can switch between being... a friend and being a killer that fast, can they?"

"...I don't know anymore."

 

 

Blue knelt by the couch," Little Bones, its time to wake up. We've got to go..."

The child blinked open his eyes slowly, a soft, broken whine emitting from him. Those tired orbs gazed at them, Papyrus in particular, mumbling about a doctor that died away as he began to recall where he was. Upon doing so, he sat up and tilted his skull, face obscured with confusion.

"Don't worry. You'll be able to sleep more," Papyrus assured.

"We've got to take you somewhere," Blue said.

"You'll be safe," Papyrus continued," I promise."

"Strawberry is very nice."

"it's okay."

"you'll be okay."

 

"Everything's okay."

Little Bones didn't believe them.

* * *

 

The teleportion device beeped as they landed within the Fell House. As per usual, the home felt decrepit , nightmare memories haunting every nook and cranny. Boarded up windows, a door with four locks, furniture worn, not from use but age. The house wasn't a home, just a hiding spot.

Little Bones scooted closer to Blue. 

Before either brother could call out for the edgier Sans, Strawberry came down the stairs, each step deliberate and quiet. The jumpy skeleton looked more faded than his  ~~prison~~ house, sockets half-lidded and movements shaky. He didn't bother trying to smile until was before them and, with exhaustion weighing down each limb down, a slow wave the pained grin.

"Mornin', ya'll," Strawberry murmured, voice raspy and soft, as though he hadn't used it in weeks.

~~Or as though he had been screaming for hours~~

Blue pouted," its 2 AM. You both better be sleeping once we're gone."

Little Bones glanced up at him,"...gone? Where...?"

The expression on his face hurt Blue beyond belief.

"Don't worry, Little Bones-" Blue began.

"-it's only for a little bit." Papyrus finished.

Little Bones stared at them before nodding, slowly. The child's things were passed to their companion before he was ushered to look around.

"...Strawberry," Blue said, reaching a hand out to his friend and, with sadness, watched him flinch," are you okay? You look..."  
"Like the devil threw you into a pit and shat on you." Papyrus cut him off, crossing his arms and gazing down at Strawberry.  


"...'m okay, guys. Jus' tired. Y'know how this place is."

Blue eyed him," are you hurt?"  
  
"wha- no, no! Again, jus' tired. Ya'll should get goin'."

 

...

 

"okay, just... just take it easy."

Then, with goodbyes bade, they left.

 

The moment they disappeared, Strawberry slumped, sighing heavily.

"Let's hope this goes well." He muttered to no one in particular. The words were hollow and tired.

But what did Little Bones know about that?

 

Strawberry herded Little Bones up the stairs into his room.

As per Sans behavior, the room was a mess. However, what made up the mess was significantly less. Strawberry had a bed and, really, that was it. Unless a laundry hamper counted as furniture, there wasn't much else to be spoken of.

The blankets on his bed were worn and faded, falling apart at the seems. He had two flat pillows, supported by clothes long since out-grown or destroyed to be of use else where. Little Bones took in the single shirt, a large turtleneck, on the floor, lying among glass shards from the window, which was boarded up with old wood and covered poorly by moth-bitten, torn curtains. This set up caused an awkward patch-work of light that scattered around the room, providing very little comfort.

He glanced up to his current host, who stared at the mess sheepishly.

"Well, it ain't the worst," Strawberry murmured, placing the drawstring bag in a corner and setting the backpack next to the sunken in mattress,"c'mere, kiddo. It's softer than it looks, I promise."

Little Bones walked slowly before climbing onto the bed, Mr, Pah falling onto the mattress and his blanket briefly catching on the corner. He settled down as the bear was placed closer to him, and his sleepiness made itself known once more. He was lulled into a dreamless whisper of sleep, lost to the world of dust bunnies and mournful cries for the time being.

* * *

 

Little Bones woke up to Strawberry putting a small bowl onto the floor, only for it be scooped up and deposited in his lap once he had moved into a sitting position.

The bed dipped as Strawberry sat on the end, fiddling with his sleeve. Little Bones watched as fingers, bitten ad scratched, dug into fabric, pulled strings, and dipped into the openings. His own fingers twitched.

"Is gonna be okay, kiddo. But I need ya ta stay quiet, kay? Not right now, but tomorrow fer sure."

Huh, so he is staying longer than a night.

"I'll give ya a choice ta stay here or ta come wit me ta work tomorrow. Ya can't go between, though."

"..."

"Don't worry none 'bout food-"

"Hiding." Little Bones stated firmly.

"Wha-"  
"'m hiding from someone, right? Or... or do you just want me to be quiet?"

Strawberry eyed the child. Little Bones thought he looked scared but, of what, he didn't know. Not yet, anyway.

Strawberry sighed,"don' worry none 'bout tha', either. Jus' be quiet tomorrow an' it'll be okay."

The older skeleton lifted his hand to pet Little Bones, only to pause and press the teddy closer, instead. Then, with sluggish movements, he disappeared, the door closing with the barest of sounds.

Little Bones stared after him for a moment, fingers running through the rough fur of his old teddy. Slowly, he looked down.

"He reminds me of you, Mr. Pah." He whispered and, for a moment, he swore the bear's eyes gleamed with a warm, sad orange.

* * *

Strawberry only entered the room a few times during the day, which was only to bring food or collect the laundry from the hamper. Little Bones didn't really pay much attention at this point, as he felt as though he was trapped. The bare room room felt like a cell )the doctor called it his waiting room. It was tiny and dirty and he hated his waiting room), the periodic check-ins were all too familiar, and he knew this game well.

Don't speak, don't stare, just look away.

don't complain, don't ask, don't "give me that face-"

~~"Don't remind me that you're just a child-"~~

 

And that's how it went. Most of the time, Little Bones sat in the bed, playing hopscotch with children, whose faces were long since degraded, on the walls, which flickered from rotting wood to gray concrete with dirt, dust, and blood in the cracks. He would play with his toys when the room around him was normal.

That pattern was ruined only when night fell again. Strawberry trudged into the room and, before he could lay down on the floor, Little Bones moved so he could fit onto the bed, too. The elder stared before giving in without a fight, climbing onto the bed. Both positioned themselves as to avoid touching one another and drifted off to sleep in a bitter silence, frequented by nightmares from nightmares long since forgotten, only to be lost once more each time they awoke with that disgusting heaviness in their throats and cotton in their chests.

There were times when they blinked open their sockets at the same time when that happened. Little Bones would offer Mr. Pah to Strawberry, who whispered words with no meanings but sounded vaguely comforting. Then, together they'd disappear once more.

Due to this, Little Bones found himself waking after his host with a dull ache in his skull and phantom pricks of needles that likely didn't exist anymore.

He blinked slowly, rolling onto his side and peered at the door, shut tight but unable to hide the rumble of an angry man, muffled but there. The sound made his body hurt more and made the room spin and a tall monster, poised over his prone figure, to smile devilishly, cackling as he hovered over him with those stupid tools and-

Little Bones gagged.

 

 

Strawberry came into a bowl again, ambling forward as though pained. He offered whatever mush was inside the old disk, only for Little Bones to respond by puking.

Strawverrt decided the child would be safer inside the room, rather than out and about.

* * *

 

Little Bones woke once more by the sound of doors being forced open roughly and items being thrown.

The child felt an intensely calm fear settle upon him, the god awful feeling heavy enough to weigh him down. He wondered if he should hide but his limbs were lead. So, instead, he buried his face into the belly of Mr. Pah, willing his friend to save him from whatever was tearing things apart.

The old wood of the door threatened to shatter as it slammed against the wall. There was dead silence then stomping. Little Bones was lifted into the air by the back of his shirt. The collar caught and he choked briefly until he moved his head slightly. His vision flashed between a smiling, cackling monster and the bellowing, angry skeleton holding him up.

The world spun. Little Bones fought down sobs, tears bubbling into frighteningly painful life.

The skeleton sneered at him, sockets sparking with angry red magic. There was a sickening pause before Little Bones' body slammed into the ground, the impact causing the child to let out a blood-curdling cry. Now, his body obeyed with his fear, so he pushed up, trembling, shaking, stepping back as his breath, previously obscenely relaxed, came out in erratic and strained huffs. The skeleton towered above him and Little Bones could only wonder what'll it be this time- must be bad if the doctor didn't bring any tools. He hoped it wasn't that bright, bright, painful room.

He was cornered now. The room seemed to fade away, the only thing existing was this man, so much alike the doctor that he couldn't tell the difference anymore.

Then running. Running so fast that the steps sounded like thunder and the body looked like lightening. The tiny storm hurdled itself into the man, though it only stunned him. Strawberry ripped away, poising himself in front of Little Bones. The child heaved out the barest whimper.

"You fucking disgrace! The fuck do you think you're doing, protecting a rodent? This-" The man was interrupted, which brought a surprised fury to his face.

"He ain't a rodent! He's a fuckin' kid, an' 'm takin' care of him!" Strawberry said, his voice slowly dying away in his fear.

The skeleton's face twisted into disgust,"disobedient mutt. First, we'll take care of your punishment, then you  _will_ kill this pest."

Strawberry flinched, and then froze as those hands that had threatened Little Bones moved, so fast, intent obvious. 

Strawberry felt them make impact, griping his fragile arms in a vice tight enough to break him. As his bones began to creak, Little Bones screamed.

He screamed, and screamed, and there was something louder, the room growing hot and his fingers prickled and tears were acid and-

Arms wrapped around him and his cries died in his throat, leaving a weeping child in the abused arms, holding a teddy bear whose name was a reminder.

A reminder of what he still couldn't remember.

He felt himself being lifted, cradled in Strawberry's arm while the other gathered his things. Through his tears, he could see massive holes dotting the room, letting snow in, which melted if they fell too close the singed edges. The scary skeleton was on the floor, unconscious.

He didn't think about it, though. Little Bones didn't  _want_ to think about it, focusing on the magic that enveloped him as he, along with Strawberry, disappeared from this universe.

 

 


	12. Guests

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Strawberry takes Little Bones to Sci's place, and they are both lost on how to express themselves.

The house was quiet with the morning's gentle touch. Soft bouts of light fluttered through the blinds in the window, bathing everything in its reach. Birds sang softly of the day's distant joys, the sound dancing throughout the warm air and dipping among blooming flowers and lush grass. This sweetness touched those who even were at rest, but, in this case, Sci was wide awake and could take this in fully, not unusual with how he threw himself into his work constantly. But it was hard not to when this was what greeted him when he committed to science papers and reports.

His coffee mug sat at the table, poised just far enough that the scientist wouldn't bump it, the steam twisting in the air like ribbons in the wind. His papers littered the table, as well, red pens marking up some with jumbled words and others with hastily written equations that sometimes felt like code that only he could unravel. Sci had dressed in a pale brown turtleneck and slacks this morning (one of his more fashionable choices, if you were to ask someone), his glasses carefully taped to his skull as he worked. Nothing would ruin this flow. Nothing _could_ , as little Rus was fast asleep still and his boss had given him today off. Nothing could possibly go wrong. He could stay contented with the ridiculous mathematical toil he now was faced with.

Of course, Murphy's Law dictates otherwise. Bitter as it may be, anything that can go wrong, will.

 

Sci's warning was only the weak rapping against his white, wooden door. Despite its soft nature, it seemed to have silenced the wind's tender murmurs and the birds' music. Hushed whispers reached him, the twinge of pain enough for him to move despite his annoyance with the interruption. He gripped the door handle, taking a deep breath, and throwing up the door.

Once open, the breath he had just taken was stolen away.

Sci knew Strawberry to always looked disheveled, as though he couldn't be bothered to present himself more than a homeless bum, but this took it to another level. Ruby eyelights had died into pale, flickering magic, the color seemingly stolen by the magical residue on his clothes, which manifested in burns, many of which still hot with embers. His very body shuddered with the very effort of standing, and supporting a child.

And that's really what got him the most. A baby bones, equally as shaken as the adult. Their clothes were wrinkled, and it looked like they had sustained minor injuries.

"I... I know 'm a piddlin' sight, Sci... an' ya don't like me much... but I didn't know where ta go." Strawberry rasped out, voice so, so quiet. Sci could see tears prickling at his sockets, only held back by sheer will to support the baby bones.

He stepped back and watched his alternate inside, each step agonizingly slow. Nonetheless, Sci did not rush him. Rather, he closed the door and moved ahead, moving some of the pillows on his couch to make a comfortable spot to lie down the kid.

"...what happened?" Sci asked as Strawberry let the child onto the cushions. The edgier skeleton draped a blanket over them afterward, placing a teddy right beside them. They instantly latched onto the toy.

Strawberry glanced at him, briefly making eye contact before ducking his head,"B-Boss came home and he wasn't too happy ta find a youngin in the house. The swaps wanted me ta take care o' him, but I failed... Boss ain't...."

 

"you live with your boss?"

"...tha's wha' he wants me ta call him..."

Sci shook his head, deciding best not to untangle that mass of words right now. He leaned over the child, attempting to press his hand to his skull, only for him to whimper and bury himself into the blanket. Sci's frown deepened.

"Strawberry, what did you do?" There was an accusing tone in his voice that he just couldn't reign in for some reason.

"I didn't...!" Strawberry seemed to choke,"the kid's been through a lot an' it's not very nice ta put tha' all on me 'cuz ya hate me! I don't know wha' exactly made him... scared an' all tha', but Boss probably did somethin' before I got there."

The scientist adjusted his glasses, but did not respond.

"Look, I know ya don't believe me, but I didn't hurt 'im. I wouldn't do somethin' like tha'," Strawberry gestured to the child," Lil' Bones here is jus' tha' way. Comes wit' the territory."

Sci shook his head again, sighing," what's his name?"

"Lil' Bones. I jus' said it."

"...right, okay."

Sci patted Strawberry's shoulder (promptly ignoring the violent flinch he received in response), and moved to the kitchen. Rus would be up soon, and he had more mouths to feed. He'd rather not make pancakes, but he had promised his brother the sweet food. And he doesn't break promises.

"Does he need medical attention?" Sci called from the kitchen, grabbing a pan and butter.

He heard shuffling before,"nah, jus' some scraps. He'll be okay."

"Strawby is hurt!" came a tiny voice, rough with extreme use.

...

Little Bones was good with nicknames, Sci thought. Strawby is... cute.

He poked his head from the doorway, sizing up the flustered skeleton.

"'m not hurt badly. I jus'... naturally limp...?"

 

"...I'll patch you up once breakfast is done. For now, Little Bones should rest."  


* * *

 

Not long after the golden cakes had finished, Rus came downstairs, pulling on his scarf as he moved. Sci watched as he poured himself and Strawberry coffee, a fond smile on his face.

"morning, bro."

"Good morning, brother! I see we have company!" Rus animatedly pointed to Strawberry and then the lump on the couch that was Little Bones. Sci chuckled softly at the behavior his brother had always displayed. Grandness really was his forte.

"they came for a little visit. Strawberry's taking care of a kid named Little Bones; that's the couch monster right now."  


Little Bones grunted from his spot, popping his head out from the blanket,"'m no blanket monster! You are!"

Sci snorted loudly, glancing away and covering his mouth. In response, he got three blank, confused stares, but he did not explain. Instead, he finally plated the pancakes and set them on the table, now cleared from clutter. He put butter and syrup in the center, then followed up with orange juice for the boys. Rus was quick to sit down, but Strawberry had to coax Little Bones to the table and, the entire time, he gripped his plush like a lifeline.

Once everyone was seated, Rus and Sci began eating. Little Bones and Strawberry glanced between one another and the meal and, slowly, they began to eat, as well. Unhurried movements in a fast moving life. Afraid.

While Rus and Sci brought life to the dining room with conversation, their guests made no attempt to respond or join in. Even when Little Bones had been asked questions, he had fallen silent and gave vague gestures instead of any substantial answer. Rus had taken this in stride, despite his older brother's obvious frustration with this behavior the other child had presented. 

When it was over, Strawberry did up the dishes while Sci went over the day's plan with Little Bones and Rus. The idea had been to take Rus swimming, but the guests' sudden arrival had made that difficult, so Sci was suggesting Rus take Little Bones to the park or stay home and hang out in his room. Sci would be too busy to hang out, but he'll check in every once in a while. 

Once they understood, they were sent away to decide their plan of action. Sci then went back to Strawberry, leaning against the wall while his counterpart dried his hands.

"So, you're hurt? I know your leg is injured, but where else?"

"Lil Bones told ya a tall tale, Sci."

Sci moved closer, grabbing the edgy version by the shoulders. Fear and confusion flashed across the cracked skull.

"If you're not going to tell me, then I'm going to find out on my own. You're not being stupid in my house."

Strawberry choked, grasping onto Sci's wrists,"please don't say things like tha'..."

"Then tell me," Sci demanded, shaking one hand loose and grabbing the left sleeve of Strawberry's jacket," I'm not going to-"  
  
"p-please stop," Strawberry whispered, voice heavy with something only he knew. Sci backed down when he realized Strawberry was crying this time, the tears dripping slowly down his cheeks.

 

The scientist herded the Fell onto the couch before plopping down on the coffee table,"Strawberry, I didn't mean to make you cry. I just... want to know where you're hurt."

Strawberry's head fell and his shoulders slumped,"I think Boss might've cracked my arms. I know my leg is... in purty bad condition, upper an' lower. An' my chest hurts."

"Can I see?"

Shaky breathes puffed out as the sweater was shed, followed by the shirt. Strawberry's body looked like an old building, cracks and dents and graffiti craved into a structure that should be cleaner and stronger yet isn't. His sternum bore the latest of cracks, a spiderweb injury that branched out, with the center have a small hole punched out. The newest injuries on his arms looked like an attempt to crush the bone. Then, Strawberry pulled up the bottoms of his shorts; his fibula had an oblique fracture higher up so it hid under the shorts, while his femur had a long gash along the front, which had, at one point, bled but hadn't been cleaned or bandaged.

Sci felt sick at the sight before him,"wh-"  
  
"don't ask, please. I don't wanna talk 'bout it."

The request was met with silence, and then he disappeared to get his first aid kit.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've run out of pre-written chapters. This is going to be an interesting set-up for me.
> 
> Also, shout-out to those of you commenting! Again, I'm terrible with responding but I'm so glad ya'll enjoy this!


	13. Few Remaining

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rus and Little Bones figure out where to play.
> 
> Ink wonders how cruel can fate be.

Ink stood before his friend with tired eyes. His very being oozed with confusion and exhaustion, his energy having been drained by a search for answers that brought him no closer to them. Dream felt pity for him, knowing that this investigation was going to take more from than a good night's rest.

"Have you figured anything out?" Dream asked, moving closer to Ink, putting his arm around him.

Ink let out a mournful sigh,"just the universe that went down. Pommy was supposed to help with Little Bones."

Dream nodded, beginning to lead his friend to lie down in the grass. He recalls this being an unfinished AU, one that never got to be populated, and thus has been made into a place for Ink to relax. And, god, did he need to relax now.

"well," Dream began,"we... we could hold a funeral soon."

"Yeah, I guess."

The usually cheerful monster glanced to him, putting his hand on top of the other's.

"We'll figure this out, Ink."

"how?!" Ink cried out,"We can't figure out who did it, Dream! It's so close to Cross's work, but  _ it isn't!  _ It could be Error's but we all know that he's not, you know, being himself right now! How could an entire universe just implode like that?! There's not even a trace of it left!"

The Creator hunched over, shaking with either grief of a friend lost or with the anger produced by  _ knowing _ you can't protect those you want.

Dream looked away, closing his eyes,"We'll find out, Ink. We'll fix this. I know we will."

"you're too optimistic."

"Someone has to be."

Rus and Little Bones sat on the floor of Rus' room. It was clean, uncomfortably so for a child. The bed was neatly made with a nightstand with books and a lamp in place. He had shelves of action figures, and a bean bag full of stuffed animals. His wallpaper was superheros flying around, overlooking a city with towering buildings. His dresser had stickers littering every part of it, as did a small book shelf, which housed books and handheld gaming consoles, and propped up a backpack, and his closet door. The back of his door had hooks where scarves and sweaters hung, all bright oranges and reds. The carpet was soft, colored an extremely faded red. 

Little Bones liked this room; it was nice and cozy.

"So! What do you like to play, Little Bones?"

"I... I don't know," replied the smaller baby bones,"I don't... 'play' a lot."

"Well, sure you do! You're a kid, too, right? You're small like me and wear a striped shirt!" Rus pointed to the shirt, which poked out from behind the sweater.

"I usually just... I don't know... Re... Re-n'act stuff?"

"...re-enacting stuff? Like what?"

Little Bones stared at the ground,"I don't wanna talk 'bout it."

Rus took this in stride, as he did with the vague answers before," that's okay! I'll teach you some games, alright?"

The mismatched skeleton nodded slowly with this. It didn't seem like a bad idea. In fact... learning how to behave like a normal child would be fun, right? Then all the adults would stop looking at him as if he's... broken.

 

...was he broken?

 

He didn't want to think about that.

 

"Alright! But... where should we play?"

"Does it matter?"

"...well, not always! Outside, you play games where you run a lot and stuff. Indoors, you play with toys or video games or color!"

"Why can't you play that stuff outside, though?"

Rus blinked slowly," well... that's a fair point, actually! Coloring might be hard outside, though... You'd lose all your crayons!"

"...can we try the vid'o games?"

"Video games? Oh, yeah, sure! Do... do you want to play that outside?"

Little Bones glanced at the window above the other child's bed before nodding.

"Okay, but promise not to lose my games!" Rus held out his hand, his pinkie extended.

Little Bones stared at this gesture in confusion," what are you doing..?"

"It's a pinkie promise! You're supposed to the same thing and then we- yeah, yeah like that!"

Little Bones found himself even more confused as he held up his own hand, mirroring Rus' gesture. Then Rus intertwined their pinkies. Little Bones felt his body... spaz...?

Rus jerked back, his eyes wide," what happened?!"

"...I... I don't know. Please don't do that again. I don't like it."

Rus agreed, though he eyed the other child as he fetched the handhelds. Then, the two made their way downstairs. They stopped in the living room, where the adults were quietly speaking among themselves. Rus cleared his 'throat', successfully gaining his brother's attention.

"We're gonna go to the park!" He exclaimed proudly.

"Alright, be home in time for lunch," replied Sci, looking over to them fondly.

Strawberry grunted as he began to move," Lil' Bones, ya need yer shoes..."

He was pushed down by Sci, who got up from the couch and rummaged through the child's things before walking over to him. He placed them before the child, watching him slowly slid them on before nodding firm and returning to his seat.

"be safe, boys," he called,"and don't leave the park!"

They chorused they wouldn't before rushing outside. 

By outside, I mean truly outside. The Surface yawned out before them, the sun shining brilliantly, with a soft breeze brushing over plant life that thrived. The yard before them wasn't super big, but large enough to have a stone path leading to fencing and a sidewalk. Flowers of all shades bloomed along side this path. Rus didn't allow Little Bones to admire this new environment, as he was already opening the gate and waiting for him. Little Bones walked quickly to him, but found he needed to keep a light jog going to keep up with the other. By the time they had crossed the street in front of Sci's house, he was out of breath.

"...are you okay?" Rus asked, tilting his head,"I've never seen some get tired by that..."

"Uh, I dunno how to explain it? I don't usually have to... do whatever I just did?"

"...you were jogging??"

"what is that?"

"...never mind. Come on, the park's just over there!" Rus gestured to a playground area on the same plot of land they stood on. It was simple, with a few different types a slides, swings, benches... Nothing fancy, but nonetheless suitable for kids who just wanted to run around. 

The metal, painted incredibly vibrant hues, blinded the smaller kid for a moment before he was, once more, following Rus.

"Let's play in the shade, okay?"

He responded with a nod and two sat down beneath a big tree. Little Bones stared up at the leaves for a while before a device was placed in his arms. Rus held up his own, giving instructions on how to use it. Shortly after, he produced two games and taught that to the other, as well. Not long after, they began playing together, and Little Bones found himself enchanted by the screen's display of little creatures that fit into balls and fought beside the player.

* * *

 

 

 

Ink felt the same searing pain in his chest again, though significantly less... vision-causing. Through a blurry gaze, he watched Dream sway, doubling over from the agony brought up him, just as Ink himself fell back, grasping the clothe above his ribs.

It was torture, how four minutes could feel like eternity, dragging itself on, dipping claws into the earth of time and moving as slowly as possible, just so they could feel what true anguish felt like. When it ceased, it never truly left, with a dull throbbing flowing through their magic veins and causing their souls to freeze from time to time. But it ended, and Ink was relieved for that.

Except...

"Another one is gone," Ink breathed out.

Dream shook,"oh, stars, this is bad."

"I," he shuddered," I need to find out... which one..."

"I'll come with," insisted his friend.

Ink couldn't fight him on this, not now. He grabbed the other's hand and disappeared from the one place that had been spared suffering until now.

...

 

it wasn't hard to find. Outertale was visited by everyone, so they would know who went down. And, god, it was true. They had appeared in front of Star, who stared up at them blankly. In his arms... Lust. Lust was sobbing, his frame trembling violently, breathing hitching, heaving up words that made no sense. All while Star held him as if trying to keep something fragile from breaking apart. And, god, he was trying  _so hard_ , but you can't stop someone from crumbing into pieces of grief and fear and  _loneliness-_

 

"They're gone," Star whispered, and Ink knew. He knew who had fallen.

 

And he knew that Lust was the last from his universe.

 

  
  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I feel like I'm rushing some stuff now, but it's fine. I'll try to reign back and take it easy again.


	14. Zalgo text is edgy but I still use it

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Today, it's literally just discussion.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Zalgo text reads:
> 
> Since he left his stripes behind so long ago.  
> Because they told me so.

With lunch fast approaching, the two kids made their way back to the house. Rus spent his time animatedly talking about Pokemon, which Little Bones listened to with some form of enthusiasm. After all, it was so  _cool_ and the creatures were cute or tough but they were all strong. And this was what kids usually did? Well, it was fantastic and he wanted to do it more. 

After all, the echos of pained screams and mournful moans could not touch his memory when pixels built games to play, when they twisted into sweet animals that chirped and buzzed and loved him. He didn't have to have memories when he had this little pocket world. The only exception was that same dizzying pain that he got before Ink left. He had paid it no mind, preferring the normal life of a boy than that of a kid who felt things he shouldn't. 

 

But, right now, he wasn't playing. No, he was listening to the boy next to him. Speaking of this universe that they could not touch outside of controls on a device. And he loved it.  He loved every part of this situation, right in this moment. The breeze, the smell of flowers, the trees swaying with a song he can't hear, the grass... All of this noise, so foreign, so new, yet so  _right_. It feels like this is exactly what he'd been yearning for,  ~~s̸̡͔̥̱̉͒I̴̟̳̠͋̃N̷̻͉̮͆̈̚̕C̶̳̘̩̃e̸̤̘͕͕͊ ̶̢̻̝̅͐̿̌Ḧ̶͔̞͓́̎͗̕E̷̤̓̾͠ ̵̛̘͗̓͊Ľ̶̟̙̍̇́ẽ̶͚̩̬̌͝f̴̨͐͆̽̕T̴̲̣̬̺̉̒ ̷̢̛̗̟͛H̴̩̰͗̓̈́͝I̷̫̖̲̼͂s̷͔̹̤͚̓̿̓ ̸̬̭̖̟̎̔̚͝S̶͍͖̓t̷͈̫̽̚͜R̷̨̠͉̪̅̂͐͝Ǐ̸̳̬̝̳͑p̵̨͍̗̳̒̀̿͝e̸̙̳̊S̴̬̕ ̴͙͓̑̆͛̕b̶͓̔ẻ̶̠H̵̳͙̭̑͐ḯ̷̩̖̈̽N̸̮͇̿͒̌d̶̡̳͉͐͋͐͜ ̷̮̀̃a̴͇͕̼͍͆̇l̵̼̍̆͆͘l̴̺̈́ ̷̤̹̠͔͗̈́̇t̷͖͎̃ͅh̷̝̻̭͎̍͠o̵̧̝͕͈͆̋̑̕S̸͕͎͈̍́͘ę̷̨̚͝ ̶̦̤̗͜y̸̡͗̎E̵͇͐̾̋A̵̦̱͚͐̄͘͠ṛ̶͕͙̾͌ͅs̷̨̛̪͓ ̴̳͉̪̍̀̇̌͜A̷̰̦͝ḡ̴̜̭̞̈́̌̚Ọ̶̱̑̓̾.~~

Unfortunately, it can't last. The atmosphere changed to heavy and cold when the door to the house opened. Rus had stopped talking the moment it had, as though the feeling had turned into its own blistering cold wind that pulled them both back by their clothes, ripping at their bones and luring them away from whatever this was. The thing was, they couldn't move. At least, Little Bones couldn't. The wind had frozen him.

It couldn't last forever, so the boys walked inside.

Sci was gripping his phone, poised in front of the kitchen doorway. Strawberry was sitting on the couch, looking sheepish and... well, a little frightened.

"Sci, it ain't tha' bad-"

"I'm not letting him into my house."

"Inky says is important!"

Rus stepped forward, catching the attention of the two adults,"what's going on?"

"Well," Strawberry began,"is jus' tha' someone... questionable is comin' over soon. But he ain't tha' bad!"  
  
That last part was directed towards Sci, who glowered at the floor.

"Rus, Little Bones, you both should stay up in Rus' room." He said, putting his hands on his hips.

Little bones tilted his skull,"Inky is coming over, isn't he? He's going to have someone with him. Something happened."

Strawberry's expression morphed into a knowing sadness, whilst Sci only looked startled. Little Bones blinked slowly, shaking his head.

"Come on, Rus. let's get lunch and go upstairs. You can show me those cards you were talking about!" 

 

 

Strawberry watched them the entire time, until the boys had disappeared upstairs. Sci moved beside him.

"the hell was that?" Sci hissed out.

"I think it has something ta do wit' who he is, Sci." The Fell gripped his hands together, closing his sockets.

"...what do y-"  
  
"Sci, he's Error."

...

 

"...no. That's not..."  
"Somethin' went wrong wit' Ink and his last fight an' now he's just a kid. A kid wit' lotta problems."

"That doesn't make sense!"  
"Ta hell wit' yer 'sense'. It ain't gonna change nothin' right now."

Sci fell quiet. Neither spoke more.

* * *

 

Ink knocked on the wooden door firmly. Behind him, he could hear Star and Lust, holding one another like a couple might, though this was only the burden of grief, caressing the face with fingers of tears, rather than the sweet throes of love. Dream stood beside him, a silent, watchful guardian to an unspoken vigil among the four.

The door opened slowly, and the scarred face of Strawberry greeting them with a friendly smile. He invited them in, and Star and Lust released each other as they all stepped onto the polished hardwood floors.

Sci was seated neatly in a dining room chair, his displeasure clear as he eyed Lust.

"You folks need some tea. Lemme go make some." Strawberry said, ushering everyone into seats and disappearing into the kitchen. The silence that followed was deafening.

 

Sci opened his mouth, but Lust held up his hand.

"Save it. I know you hate me, you hate what I do, what I wear... Just fucking shove it up your ass."

"Lust, you wo-" 

"SHUT UP! Stop calling me that! I'm not a fucking  _desire_! I'm a living being!" He stood up, hands balled into fists," Stop reducing me to this shit! For fuck's sake! I've said it over and over, I'm  _Candy_! And... and..."

He fell back, curling up into Star as he wept.

"please, stop... stop doing this. Not now."

 

Sci glanced away.

 

Strawberry returned, moving mugs from a platter to everyone. His expression was blank, but, as he moved to Candy, it changed. He moved, grabbing his hand.

"I... I came to say that... Lust... I mean, Candy... has... has no where to go. His universe is gone. All of it. He's the only one left." Ink murmured.

"...fuck, I need to control my mouth." Sci whispered, which managed to prompt Candy into a fit of humorless giggles.

Candy looked at him, a wet smile on his face,"don't we all?"

 

...

 

"We need a place for Candy to stay." Ink said, rubbing his skull.

Sci glanced to the Fell, now sat beside Candy and Star," and for Strawberry. I can take in one of them, but not both."

Ink gave the two a weird look,"did Strawberry's universe go down, too?"

"No," the scientist began,"his is just fucked."  
  
"don't I have a say in goin' back ta my birth place?" Strawberry asked, raising a brow.

"Not when you come into my house with those injuries," replied the other coolly. Candy turned to Strawberry, sockets wide.

"You got into a fight?" He exclaimed, confusion tumbling from his words.

The fell sunk into the couch further,"ta protect Lil' Bones... Can we not talk 'bout this? Candy needs a place more than I do, since he don't got no where ta go now."

"I would let him stay with me," Star piped up,"but the house is a little crammed as is. Though, I think my Grillby wouldn't mind some company and a potential worker. He has a spare bedroom."

Sci leaned back into his chair, taking a sip of his tea,"I'm sure the Swaps have room, too. They've got that shed thing, and Blue has been telling me he wants to make it more comfortable. I think the originals wouldn't mind, either."

"Sans doesn't like me. Like, at all. He wouldn't want me near his brother even if I was dusting, love." Candy sighed quietly, closing his sockets.

"Then," Ink began,"your best best is with the swaps or Star's Grillby. We'll have to talk to them."

They all fell quiet again, the silence bringing contemplation upon the group with a cool, swift hush. This situation was far from normal, and it had likely been one that none of them had considered happening. Ink marveled this strange twist, what with Error as a child that couldn't harm a universe, yet them disappearing as though their very core had been rotten.

 

 

 

Or, maybe, Ink thought, it was them who were rotten, and not their onlooker homes.

* * *

 

Rus knew this was bad. He knew that he shouldn't be listening in, but his new friend had insisted. And, the more they listened, the more he had regretted giving in. An entire universe... gone...

And the look on Little Bones' face... Sockets nearly closed, staring at discolored fingers as though he were parasites, as though he was seeing something in the extremely faint yellow and red and black, his mouth parted and...

Much like he had seen in Pokemon, Little Bones' face glitched. His breathing echoed and sputtered. Rus thought he could see tears, but the  _errors_ made it hard to tell. He could only stare at the other child, this strange fur seizing up his body, preventing him from moving, speaking, attempting to understand. Little Bones lifted his head, and he seemed darker, the dull, weird colors saturated against black, shown only in brief sputters of reality breaks.

"This is my fault," Little Bones breathed, the voice heavier, deeper. Older.

"How?" Rus asked, shivering.

Little Bones was silent, his body seemingly tearing in two before he finally responded.

"I don't know."

 "Then how...?"  
  
Little Bones gripped his skull, heaving up broken breathes, some of them vaguely sounding like laughter. He turned to Rus, and, for a moment, the taller child felt as though he were gazing into the eyes of a murderer with nothing left to lose and only one more target.

"b̶͙͖͓̎̄̅͐é̵̳̻͝c̶̹̤̙͑a̶͙̬͕̒u̵̳͉̿̔̿s̵̛͙͎̋ͅe̵̢̱̥̹͐̓͛͛ ̸̙͔̭̖̐̎̑t̶̠̭̠̅̃̇̈́h̴̢̒ẻ̸͇͖͚̐͜͠ẏ̴͍͖̤̃̉ ̵̼̙̱̉ț̶͗o̵̧͔͓̽͒̇ľ̸͓̅͘͝d̵͖̼͂ ̸̛̮͈̈̆͘m̸̹̈̄̈́e̸͇͒̃̏͠ ̶͚̉̊̽͝ͅs̵̲̍o̸͓͈̤̊̏̋̈́."

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's midnight, but it counts as the next day, so here we are!


	15. Sci learns how to be gay so that's cool.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Note: Sci doesn't actually learn to be gay, but that's alright because he's getting there.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For info on the upcoming school year and anniversary of Where it Began, please read the bottom notes!

The store was large, as it should be for a town this big. For Sci and Rus, it was just normal. Normal blinding lights and confusing signs and bustling souls, trying to prepare for dinner or for the week. This was not new, and it would never change. But, for Strawberry and Little Bones, the noise drowned out words of comfort or distraction. And, for Candy, it was just another worthless place for worthless events to take place whilst he mourned.

 

Nonetheless, groceries are incredibly necessary for day to day modern living, and Sci was... well, kind of scared to leave the three alone, what with Strawberry's 'clumsy' nature, Little Bones' instability and the survivor's guilt that Candy had to face. So here they were, combating the anxiety that two of them faced. Strawberry was holding Sci's hand, and helping push the cart since it was  _not_ a one-handed job, while Little Bones was in the cart with Rus, the two playing Pokemon again, Mr. Pah tucked into Little Bones' lap. It was a good thing Sci wouldn't need the whole damn cart, or else this would be a pain. Candy followed after them, wearing baggy, comfortable clothes with his hoodie drawn, staring at his phone as if, at any moment, it'd beep and reveal that this entire thing was some stupid prank. Though Sci was relieved the male wasn't dressed skimpily as before, there was something off putting by the fact that almost every bone on him was covered by cloth.

They were mostly quiet during the beginning. Sci had gathered lettuce, broccoli (much to his baby brother's disgust and Little Bones' curiosity), carrots, and a bunch of vegetables he didn't care to list before Strawberry piped up.

"Sci, is it okay if... if maybe..." his voice faded with shyness," if I got some things?"

Sci raised a 'brow',"what for?"

"I... I wanna bake some cookies fer the kiddos..."

"...can you even bake?"

"Sci, if I didn't know how ta bake, I wouldn't be askin'." Strawberry countered, though it held no malice of any kind.

"I don't know..." Sci muttered.

Rus piped up," Candy, so  _you_ want cookies?"

"...I don't know." Candy replied, monotone and tired. Rus bade this no mind for the time being.

"...what's a cookie?" Little Bones asked, glancing up from his game and tilting his head.

 

Strawberry and Rus gave furious looks.  
  
"WE'RE MAKING COOKIES!" Rus yelled, gesturing to Little Bones. A few people in the store gave them looks, many of which were dirty.

"...fine, we're making cookies."

Rus cheered, which prompted Little Bones to, as well, though the smaller child looked so confused. Even Sci knew that, as sad as that was, it was quite... amusing and endearing. Nonetheless, this disruption had put him into an uneasy state, knowing well that his "parenting" would be called into question if this kept up. If no one knew the guardian, then no one could yell at him for incompetency. Plus, it wouldn't hurt to talk to Strawberry... About small things. Nothing sad or depressing, nothing that made Sci feel like his soul would collapse and ponder why Strawberry's hadn't done the same yet. 

And it could help improve his third guest's mood.

"Little Bones, Rus, give me your games. If you promise to behave, I'll let you guys go find something you like." Sci said, digging out money from his wallet, briefly letting go of Strawberry's hand, much to the edgy skeleton's discomfort. The two kids perked up and placed the game consoles into the folding basic, carefully, as to not crush the shopping list and make it annoying to get the folded reusable bags already in place. With some help from the adults, Little Bones and Rus got out from the cart (Little Bones struggling much more than his new friend, having an unlucky combination of being shorter, incredibly weak, and hardly flexible). Then, once each kid was placed and steadied on the floor, Sci gave them five dollars each.

"Don't lose the money and stick together, please." Sci stressed, putting his hands on his hip.

"Uh, ya'll could probably meet us by the the self check-outs, okay?" Strawberry supplied, to which Sci nodded in agreement.

Rus eagerly nodded his head, which, again, prompted Little Bones to do the same. Knowing Rus would behave, and that Little Bones was easily swayed by Rus' behavior, he ushered them away. Luckily, they didn't take off, but rather walked, Rus pointing out the things they could get along the way. Then, with that, Strawberry ushered Candy into the basket, much to the other two's confusion.

"Is so we don't lose 'im! Wit' 'im mopin' 'bout behind us, he's gonna fall behind!" Strawberry declared firmly, grinning that charming, stupid grin. Candy produced a small, quiet chuckle at this behavior, and Sci didn't have the heart to argue with the Fell. Instead, he grabbed his hand and the handle again.

"oh, what an adorable family! Young love is such a beautiful thing." crowed a voice from behind them. It trembled and quaked, yet held confidence that the entire group could not equal when combined.

Sci turned to look at the owner, an elder lady who came to stop beside them. She lifted a shaky hand to cover her smile, though it was much too big, it felt like, as even her eyes twinkled with it. Sci tilted his head.

 

"Yes, young man, I'm talking to you! Look at you, having everything figured out! Let's see, I see... oh, a husband, eh? So brave! And two little boys that are much too excitable. How adorable, really. Imagine having that your entire life. And you even have an adorable teenager! Goodness, he looks lazy, but perhaps he's just an artist?" the woman chortled cheerfully, digging out three candies from her bag and passing them to Sci, saying that they were meant for their kids.

Strawberry was blushing so fiercely that not even hiding his face in his turtleneck could disguise it. Candy was dumbstruck, mouth agape and eyes wide, and Sci could only thank her for her words and sweets before she was off again, going about the store, without a clue of what her words had caused and the ruin it seemed to have made. Of course, that's a dramatic way of putting it, but it's fine.

 

Sci handed the treat to Candy, who just kind of glared but ate it anyway.

"Well, that was certainly... something!" Sci exclaimed dumbly, pushing the cart once more, with the help of his 'husband', who was once again emerged from his clothing.

 

"How do I look younger than you two?" Candy grumbled miserably. 

Sci chuckled," hormones."

 

Candy's response was chucking the wrapper into Sci's eye socket, hitting dead on. Sci's eyelights sputter out in horror and disgust, whilst the other two Sanses snickered. 

"I'm going to have that stuck in my eye socket this entire trip...! You're all lucky I love you."

Strawberry chuckled," we love ya, too, Sci."

* * *

 Little Bones found himself relieved that Rus was by his side. He didn't understand a thing that was around him (though, he managed to conclude some items and their uses). He had his hand and money buried into the pocket of his favorite sweater, the kitten ears bobbing along with his movements. In his other, he held Mr. Pah's arm. Rus, on the other hand, held his in a fist by his side, rushing about excitedly to and from all the products in which they could potentially buy. 

"What do you wanna buy, Little Bones?" Rus asked as they moved closer to an aisle of packaged goods. 

Little Bones shrugged," I don't think I know anything I'm looking at."

Rus hummed in response, his brows furrowing. His step slowed, as though he only realized that there was something wrong with the statement, or similar statements, his friend had said. He turned to him, sad eyes now boring into him; orange.

Little Bones shuddered, looking away, unable to view the other," try not to think about it, okay? Um, I think I'll hold onto mine, if Sci let's me."

"That's... fair," the taller muttered," I'll get candy for both of us, okay?"

"...sure. You can, like, figure out what I might like, right?"

Rus nodded enthusiastically," yeah! I'll get some of the more popular ones. It's a safe bet, and I usually like them, too!"  
  
Little Bones smiled, suddenly feeling more energetic," I can't wait! This... this is all so new, and  _cool_!"

"It's cool even when you're used to it!" supplied Rus proudly. Those words brought about excitement to the younger skeleton; the idea of this being  _normal_ and  _good_ was something that he'd cherish among the nightmares that clouded his mind. He can learn here, to be a good child, not a tool. He could be happy here, as a person, and not an object. If he hurt someone, it'd be an accident, and not because he was some sort of weapon.

 

He wasn't a weapon.

 

 

 

right?

* * *

 

When everything was purchased, the group loaded up into Sci's van; Sci driving, Candy in the seat beside of him, and Strawberry seated between the boys in the back. It was an awkward fit, what with machines and tools in the very back. Though they were secured, they rattled and clanked and, in general, brought about anxiety to a few members. Nonetheless, Candy, Strawberry, and Little Bones found themselves intrigued by it. In fact, Little Bones clicked on and off the lock and rolled the window up and down, while the adults quietly pondered about this.

After a while, Sci sighed through his nose," I can't wait to get back. Candy, you  _will_ help me get the wrapper out of my socket."

"Maybe." Candy replied with a snicker, once more looking up from his phone. In return, he got a quick jab to his side, and he couldn't help a shocked giggle.

 

"...oh my god, yer ticklish!" Strawberry whispered excitedly.

"I wouldn't suggest tickling me, bud." Candy replied, shooting him a look. Nonetheless, they found themselves amused.

The conversation was cut short by Little Bones jumping in his seat, tapping the window," there! What's that? I wanna see! It says store but it looks different!"  
  
Sci glanced to the object of the child's curiosity," that's a thrift store. People bring in used goods for people who can't afford them. Or for people who just like thrifting."

Candy tilted his head," so, it's sorta like a normal shop Underground?"  
  
"Yeah, but it's donated, not thrown away. I guess we could stop there..."

He veered onto another road, eventually turning into the parking lot. He pulled to a stop shortly after sliding into a parking space. Everyone climbed from their seats, Little Bones much more animated than everyone else. Once that was done, Sci locked up the van and led everyone inside.

The building was small, decorated with signs inviting people in or prompting them to donate. The windows had items on display to make quaint scenes with toys and fake plants. The door had a big green sign hung on it, informing visitors that its doors were unrestricted. Sci took the liberty of pushing the glass open, allowing them to be greeted by a blast of cold air and the sight of goods on sale. In the center of the main room was a large table, filled with jewelry and other such accessories and the white paint peeling. Not too far, up against the right wall and nearest to the door was a huge glass counter, more valuable items stored underneath its fragile material. A worker stood behind it, poised by a cash register and papers, twirling their pencil lazily. To the right of the accessories was several doors. Opposite of them was an entryway, covered poorly by a massive beaded curtain, lines and lines of clothes on hangers lined up peeked through.

The worker lifted their head and Sci found himself surprised, for whatever reason, that a monster was there. They had yarn for hair, a dark purple, though it looked like the right side had been shaven. They had dark, muted brown fabric for 'skin', though their ears were a pale flesh-y color, sewn on poorly, and they had a patch over a 'collar bone' that was purple. They add a pale purple-blue colored button for a single, while the left one was reduced to a curly black thread, mirroring the thread that was stitched along the sides of their mouth. They wore a patched up hoodie and a black t-shirt.

"New faces," They stated, their voice nearly strained, though they were smiling," welcome!"

"thank you." Sci said with his own grin, though he felt uncomfortable.

"Need help, yell." They said with a meek chuckle, nodding their way. Then, they went back to twisting about their pencil. Sci herded their group to the accessory table.

"Alright, there's some hand-held baskets over there for shopping. Everyone grab one and get what you want. We'll meet back here to count out the price. We won't get everything, okay?" Sci stated firmly.

Everyone went about with their agreement before grabbing the shopping baskets and split up. Sci wasn't too worried about the entire group being separated, what with how small this place was. Besides, he'd go and check up on them all.

 

__

Little Bones had decided in just wondering. He still struggled to understand what he wanted. He'd gotten lucky with what he had now. Maybe he wouldn't get anything and just enjoy seeing new stuff. His undetermined path led him into the entryway and past, where he found not only clothes, but a small cornered off area for toys. He tilted his head and headed to the section, letting himself touch and hold each toy with either consideration or good will. After all, he wanted each and every single plush or action figure or doll to find a home, just like he had. Each held toy, he mumbled of how they weren't unwanted, not really. That someone would come in and love them better than anyone.

Once that was done, he stepped back and smiled at the collection. He'd take all of them home, but he couldn't. But... he could take some home...

He went through again, finding a bunny plush on the bottom shelves the second time. It had long, floppy ears and excessively soft fur, patterned with blacks and browns. Its eyes were a dark, dark brown, though it bore sparkles within the color. It laid with its legs stretched out behind and in front of it, its tail following this position. Little Bones noted the white on the bottom of the paws and the tail with fondness. A  fake dandelion flower crown sat on its head and a rainbow ribbon was tied into the back, the center of the bow held in place with a pin; a name engraved on it with red hearts: Sam. 

Little Bones found he liked Sam, so Sam was tucked neatly tucked into his basket, where Mr. Pah was waiting. He smiled at them," we'll give you more friends, Mr. Pah!"

Another run through and Little Bones picked up a fabric blue blob with wide, excited eyes and a tiny pink bow on its left side, a black kitten with a big pointy hat and a broom and pretty orange eyes, and a sheep and wolf that wore costumes of the other. Each was placed carefully inside his basket before he waved goodbye to the other toys and left. He walked around again until he ended up where there was really, really big dresses, most of them white. He petted down the shirts, surprised by its silky feeling. 

He found himself somewhat jealous, as his own bones had become gray for reasons he didn't know. Nonetheless, he decided it'd be okay to play here for a little, right?

__

Strawberry hadn't really planed on getting himself something. Really, he was shopping for Little Bones, as far as clothes go. Candy had a similar thought, just across him, going from the women's clothes and the men's clothes. 

"Wha're ya lookin' fer, Candy?"  
  
"Things that'll make me feel good about myself, I guess. Cute things. Are you looking for clothes for Little Bones?" Candy responded, looking up from a turtleneck he was looking at.

Strawberry nodded, analyzing a baggy blue t-shirt with white stripes," He needs a lil' more, yknow?"

"What about you? You don't have any clothes right now, right?"

"...it ain't too bad. I can jus' go back-"  
  
"I heard more of what happened. If I can't stop you from going back there, then Sci will."

Strawberry ducked his head, flushed.

"Well, I... I s'pose I can... uh, look fer myself." He mumbled, though he dropped a couple of things into his basket for Little Bones, anyway.

"I can help." Candy said with a smile, gesturing him over. Once Strawberry was next to him, Candy began going through outfits.

"Tell me what you like to wear?"

"...I dunno. I ain't ever had a choice."

"Oh, well... Feel these fabrics and tell me which one you like." Candy said, surprising the Fell by the patience. He held up several clothes, and Strawberry touched each one.

"...tha' one's real soft, Candy. An' I like how tha' one feels... flow-y?"

The Lust chuckled softly," yeah, it's nice. What colors do you like? Red?"

"um, no... I actually," Strawberry paused, blushing darkly," I actually really like... pink, real light, though. Red's nice but..."

Candy patted his shoulder," it's okay to like something, 'Berry. Let's get you some pink stuff, alright? Let's pair it up with white, brown, or red. We'll start there."

He was herded around until they had a few things. There was a mirror by the shoes, so they moved over there. Strawberry shyly removed his coat and put it on a bench there, while Candy placed the outfits aside, grabbing a shirt. He had Strawberry still as he held it up.

Strawberry peered into the reflection he created with a curiousness he hadn't felt for a while. The shirt was a long sleeve that seemed to rest off the shoulders and was decorated with lace along the collar, the hem, and the sleeves. He imagined what he'd look like wearing it, but found himself despising what he saw.

"Aww, you'd look so cute in this, Strawberry. Maybe we can get some white shorts or jeans and tape a little flower on your skull?" Candy praised, tilting his head with a smile.

"I dunno..."

"Come on, Strawberry. Don't let the way you _think_ about yourself stop you from at least  _feeling good_. Don't rely on self-worth to determine how you should feel." 

Strawberry glanced to him before smiling," ya got me there, Candy. Can I see the others?"

Candy put down the shirt and scooped up another with a flourish ," of course, love!"

...

 

Five minutes later and they had begun a miniature fashion show for just the two of them. Candy was admittedly glad he let Strawberry go first; the smile on his face was so bright, so wide, Candy wondered if this was the same Strawberry. Plus, though his counterpart denied himself the pleasure of self confidence, Candy knew that he looked absolutely stunning in the outfits.

Really, Strawberry would say the same when Candy would strut out like a model, posing dramatically to elicit giggles from the both of them. 

__

Rus opted for the main room. He had enough toys and games and he really didn't feel like getting any more. No, he wanted something new.

So now, here he was, looking at pretty necklaces and rings and bracelets. He even admired the earrings, despite knowing he couldn't wear them. He tilted his head and reached up, grabbing a pearl necklace and pulling it closer to himself. After a moment of admiring the glossy gemstone before sliding it on, followed shortly by bracelets. He was reaching for another one when the worker approached, a bright grin on their face.   
  
"let help?" they asked, nodding to the accessories.

Rus considered this before speaking," sure! You can put on some, too! We can be pretty!"  
  
"yes," they chuckled," pretty!"

They lifted Rus onto the table, placing him carefully onto the surface and successfully avoiding the items. Then, they began picking out more accessories. They slid a pendant on a ribbon around his neck, seeming to brighten as they worked. Rus admitted to making this just as excited.

" We didn't get your name!" Rus pointed out as a ring was slid on his finger.

"name Patch." They responded, then nodded to him.

He puffed out his chest proudly," I'm Rus!"

"pleasure," Patch grinned, putting a brooch onto his sweater.

Rus grabbed a simple chain necklace and placed it around Patch's neck," not to be rude, but why do you talk like that?"

They paused," can sign?"

"...yeah! I can."

They looked relieved, pausing their work to move their hands," (I can't speak right because I don't have a good voice box.)"

"Oh! That's okay, Mr. Patch!"

 

After that, they slowly accumulated more accessories, until, finally, they topped it off with hats from behind the counter. Patch fetched a small digital camera with long straps covered in pins, in which they spent time modeling and showing off each jewelry piece as though it were designer. Patch had even allowed Rus to take over the picture taking.

"(You're a good photographer)", they had signed with a proud smile. Rus felt a little bit bigger with the compliment.

 

Eventually, though, both of them had to put away the items, much to Rus' disappointment.

Once every thing was put up, Patch bent down to Rus, clipping one of the brooches (a simple one with a pearl bead at the center of feathered wings, small in size and lacking as much detail as several of the other ones).  Then, he passed it to the child with a large grin.

"(Here, you keep it. I never used it until now, anyway. Take lots of photos for me, okay?)"

Rus, with watery eyes, nodded quickly, thanking the worker to no end.

__

After retreating to the public bathroom and getting the wrapper out of his skull, Sci had noticed the fashion show and jewelry boutique and knew that Candy, Strawberry, and Rus were having fun. So, he spent more time attempting to find Little Bones, which proved to not be too difficult. In the wedding section, Little Bones had scooted up against one and was now wearing one of the headdresses, moving about the toys in his lap quietly, though he mouthed words as he played out a story for his own enjoyment.

Sci sat down in front of him, startling the young boy into looking up.

"Nice headdress, Little Bones." Sci commented lowly with a grin. 

Little Bones grinned," it's pretty!"

The scientist chuckled as the boy pushed up and then plopped it on top of his head.

"See? You look pretty with it on!"

"..."

"...oh, yeah, you can't see yourself."

Sci laughed, shaking his head. He stood up, placing the headdress down in its place before gathering Little Bones and his toys up.

"Almost everyone's ready, so go on. I'm going to grab a book or two."

Little Bones did as he was told.

Sci couldn't help but feel fondness swell in his bones. Really, he had never  _liked_ children; they annoyed him with everything they didn't understand and useless questions. He hadn't had time for that. He could only tolerate his brother, who was always quick to learn and to grow, quick to take in the world around him and come to his own conclusions. He was smart and independent, but chose purposely to rely Sci in some aspects anyway, so he could learn more.

And then there was this new child, one of which he himself could not define within the neat categories he put kids in. One moment, Little Bones gazed at him as though he, too, were an adult, an adult with far too much knowledge about the methods in which the world collapsed in on itself, and the way its spindly talons ripped people into shreds. The next, he breathed in bad and breathed out innocence in the most sweet sense. His eyes would widen and his hands would touch whatever caught his attention, and he'd love it. He'd love the texture and the look and every little detail of it, even if it hurt or if it was an assault on the eyes.

 

Not to mention, he was a puzzle. Sure, he know had a fair portion of the pieces (supplied by his alternates), but Little Bones wasn't solved yet.

 

 

He shook his head and fetched his books.

 

Before the group could count up the price, Candy slid some cash to Sci, who shuddered at the implications it brought, but accepted nonetheless. With this extra amount of money, they were able to afford most of everything they wanted. Everyone held bags, what with how much there was. Before they left, Sci left his phone number with Patch, mumbling about how he'd make a great babysitter, and then they were on their way.

At home, everyone's things were sorted from the pile and put away neatly. 

"...is it cookie time?" Candy asked, grinning.

Sci smirked," hell yeah it is."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> EDIT: In this chapter, Little Bones receives a plush bunny named Sam. This is in loving memory of my bunny, Sam, who passed roughly four/five days ago from a stroke. He was a very sweet rabbit, with the softest fur and prettiest eyes. I miss him dearly, so I decided to dedicate a little piece of one of my favorite works to him.
> 
> So, the last chapter didn't seem to fair very well. But that's alright! I'm excited for the chapters coming up and I'm sure ya'll will be delighted (or, at least, I hope!).
> 
> On the other hand, Where it Began's anniversary is in November! As of posting this, it is one year and nine months old. Which is amazing, since I drop projects like flies drop dead. This year, I want to try and celebrate somehow, as this fanfic has become one of my favorite works and ya'll deserve something special for staying with it, even though I'm crap at updating during the school year (which is coming up, by the way!! I will try to maintain a schedule, but I can't promise anything. Chances are, I'll either update irregularly or every two-three weeks, depending on how I feel). 
> 
> For thanking you guys, I'm personally thinking about drawing your guys' characters with one of the Where it Began characters (of your choice, of course), since my original plan would surely fail (I'm awful with writing other people's ocs). If you read this far, tell me what you think I should do! 
> 
> As for celebrating Where it Began, I think I'll write a chapter for Little Bones' birthday.
> 
> The reason I'm telling you this so early is because I know that, if I do something, I need time to execute something, so no surprises here! Thank you for reading this far, if you did, and please let me know what you want me to do for celebration.


	16. The First Plague Breathes Illness and Hurt

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> One moment, he was there. The next, he was gone.

The morning began with breaths of light, filtered through glass and blinds, dancing little blots across surfaces and people who couldn't take in the beauty of such simple pleasures. It dazzled over ceramic bowls full of cereal and milk, coffee mugs steaming with the warm liquid, and glasses with the remnants of orange juice. Its brilliance was monetarily ignored, in favor of automatic motions of a daily routine, somehow settled despite the only recent addition of three of them. They didn't speak, which really only lulled some of them back to sleep (poor Strawberry had a face covered in milk and off-brand Fruit Loops but couldn't clean himself off until Sci got a picture). 

For the most part, it was spent in utter silence. The exception's were Strawberry's incident... and his wheezy coughs. They just weak little gasps, so no one paid them any mind.

When breakfast was finished, Rus and Little Bones went upstairs to get dressed and Strawberry went about cleaning up after the group. Candy sat at the table still, sipping his coffee as Sci got a refill. 

"So, any plans for today?" Candy asked, swishing his mug some. He could recall his brother making him some, each and every morning, with a piece of something sweet. Sure, his gimmick had been ketchup, just like the Classic Sans, but he always had a sweet tooth... 

Heh, of course he did. His name's Candy. It's only natural.

 

Sci glanced up," I don't know for you guys. I have work today, s-"

 

They both froze up when there was a crash sound from the kitchen, followed by coughing and gagging. Sci was up before Candy, who followed quickly after. Strawberry had fallen, breaking a few plates from falling and knocking things over in the process. He was shaking, and swayed when he was helped up. 

"Candy... He's running a pretty bad fever. It's magic based, too..." Sci muttered, wrapping his arm around the Fell's waist and moving Strawberry's arm around his own neck.

Candy frowned darkly," Strawberry, were you going to tell us you weren't feeling well?"

Strawberry recoiled some," I broke yer dishes..."

"...God, your voice is scratchier than usually. Come on, dear, let's get you in bed." Sci replied, slowly moving with Strawberry; past the dining room and living room and into the guest bedroom he'd been staying. Candy could hear Sci's gentle scoldings, so much alike Papyrus' that he had to stand still for a moment and imagine his brother right there beside him. He used to try to hide the fact he was sick all the time, and Papyrus always figured it out and insisted on caring for him, much like the scientist.

He missed him. So, so much.

He shook his head and focused instead on cleaning up. The pet names in Sci's rants were new... though, he wouldn't be surprised if the two had ended up hooking up at some point or another. Or... Or they just went on a date? Or maybe they talked about it? Or maybe Sci had yet to actually confess, or Strawberry for that matter, but couldn't keep his feelings from seeping out via barely concealed words of endearment.

That seemed more likely.

He tossed the shards into the waste bin, moving back to his coffee. Sci returned after fifteen minutes.

"I'm taking the day off to help Strawberry. I can't believe he was more worried about my dishes..."

"...Sci, he doesn't even consider himself equal to a pile of mud. What else did you expect?" mused Candy with a small grin.

The scientist groaned as he fished out his phone," you're not allowed to be correct all the damn time in my house hold."

"...I have two wrappers on me right now. Wanna go?"

He only received a glare as the other began talking.

* * *

 

It was 1:36 when Sci answered the door, gripping a bowl of soup from a pot that he and Candy made. Candy was on the couch, in full view of guests, and Rus was peeking his head out from the dining room, a glass of apple juice near his mouth. Candy watched Sci's expression go from tired to confused to almost horrified, so he moved slightly to gaze at who was at the door. 

The tall, slim figure was unforgettable, despite the timelines' insistence on making him disappear. He stood tall, shoulders square, wearing a turtle neck and slacks and a stupid, stupid grin on his face. Beside him was Alphys, holding documents and folders, her clothes wrinkled and her glasses askew.

"Sans, I came to-"

"Gaster, not Sans right now." Sci muttered, his grasp on his bowl tightening.

"o-oh, y-you've got o-other you's a-around again, don't you?" Alphys asked, her voice high in excitement. It seems as Gaster shared the same sentiment, as he pushed past his employee with the lizard monster hot on his heels. 

 

And, suddenly, Candy was no longer on the couch, but being held up from his armpits. He made a strangled sound.

"Sa- Sci, this one's pink and purple! And smells like cinnamon. My, he's already more charming than you are."

"...first of all, ouch," Sci grumbled, closing the door," second of all, put Candy down and avoid touching him in general-"

"-hey! Jerk!" 

"third of all, he isn't charming. And, forth, what are you doing here?"

"That was a long list." Gaster commented, setting Candy back down on the couch.

Sci stared at him in annoyance.

"Oh, right!" Gaster grabbed some of the papers from Alphys and passed it to Sci," I know you wanted the day off, but I though I would drop off some results in our recent experiments. Some of them are actually quite... Interesting."

Sci took the papers, but discarded them to the coffee table," great, you ca-"

"Sci?" Strawberry's voice whispered hoarsely. Turning, the scientist found himself looking at the Fell, who was still somewhat shaky. 

"Strawberry, you're supposed to be resting." Sci stated firmly. But, before he could help him back to the bed again, Gaster was right next to them, studying the sequentially startled, sick skeleton.

"...Sci, this one looks so sad. Why are you sad, Sans?"

Strawberry choked," please don't say tha' name."

"Gaster, step back. Strawberry, go, back to bed. I have your soup."

.

.

.

Gaster and Alphys had returned to Candy as Sci tended to the Fell. Candy had moved himself from a lying position, allowing Alphys to settle into the couch easier, all while Gaster took over Sci's chair.

"Just so you know, you really shouldn't get into people's faces," Candy muttered, playing with the hem of his shirt. It was a new one. Light and pretty, but also modest. Both of best words, in this case," especially to people that look like Strawberry. You could've made him cry."

"...I didn't realize."

"You Gasters really need to learn socialize better."

"I-Is your G-Gaster like th-that?"

Candy went deadpan," my Gaster's dead. Just like everyone else. I'm the last one alive."

...

The room fell silent.

 

And, of course, Rus finally emerged from the dining room, rushing over and flinging himself onto Gaster," Uncle Gaster!"

"Hey, kiddo," Gaster chuckled, patting the child's head awkwardly. Rus got off his lap and grabbed his hand.

"You have to meet my new friend! He's so cool!"

Candy's nonexistent gut twisted.

"You made a new friend? Well, I can trust your judgement, so show me."

Gaster stood up, and the two turned to the stairs. Candy moves to watch, feeling dizzy with a storm of thunderous thoughts screaming something about something was wrong.

 

There, at the bottom of the stairs, was Little Bones, gripping the banister and Mr. Pah and staring blankly towards them group.

"Little Bones, meet Uncle Gaster, m-"

Little Began stepping back as much as he could, though three steps ended in him cornered. Gaster moved forward, and Little Bones began glitching, gazing at him with so much fucking fear that Candy felt as sick as Strawberry when he viewed it. He could tell Gaster was confused, lost, unable to move, forced to bare witness this show of the terrified. The star scientist twitched his hand up an inch, and Little Bones was screaming.  
  
"NO! NO, GO AWAY! YOU CAN'T HURT ME ANYMORE!" He cried out, sobs echoing after. Sci and Strawberry appeared again, one pulling his employer away and the other moving to get the child. Alphys began talking, but her words dyed within the noise, only the tone carrying out to the poor kid. Magic began to build, swishing into the air, filling all the emptiness within the room. Strawberry picked up his pace, but found he met nothing, not even the precious teddy bear the child adored.

Little Bones had teleported. The resulting silence breathed true panic into the remaining occupants.

 

Little Bones was gone, and no one knew where he was.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Things are getting really rough for me right now, so I apologize for the quality. 
> 
> On the other hand, I am in the process of sewing Mr. Pah! I don't have a progress picture, but his nose needs to be cleaned up and we need to get him his second eye.
> 
> And, finally, thank you all so much for commenting. I know I don't respond, but it brings me so, so much joy to see ya'll enjoying this and commenting.


	17. The Second Claws Death and Fear Into Your Thoughts (Cursed Eternity the Only Goal)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Unfair.

The room was stiflingly silent, words left in throats, choking those who had tried to speak, to say something, anything that could help this situation but the truth of the matter is; there was nothing that could help. Little Bones had disappeared, who knows where, and  _god_ _, the fear on his face-_

It was nothing like Sci had ever seen before. Its very existence stained into his thoughts and he had to fall onto the couch before he ended up collapsing on the floor. He trembled with the very thought of those terrified words brought about by a mere child. 

"I should've figured it out. All the signs were there." Sci rasped out, finally breaking free of the blockade.

Candy breathed," I think we all didn't want to think about that possibility, Sci."

"Did your Gaster also... experiment on you?" 

Sci watched the other run a hand over his skull and chuckle meekly," no. My Gaster invented the CORE by accident; there's no way in hell he had the ability to hurt a kid."

The two turned to Strawberry, who sluggishly shrunk down.

"did yours?" Candy asked.

"uh," Strawberry glanced away," kinda...?"

Gaster, who had been listening with such horror on his face that Sci wouldn't be surprised if it had strained his expression into looking like that for a week after, stared at Strawberry," what do you mean by 'kinda'?!"

"Did he or did he not, Strawberry?" Sci prompted.

"At this point, if something bad could happen to someone, assume it has happened to him." Candy remarked lowly. Strawberry grew flustered, unable to keep up with everything. Really, after conversation began to crescendo with possible miseries the Fell had experienced, he gathered enough magic to create a week, choppy looking bone and throw it into the center of the room, successfully catching everyone's attention again.

"Fer fuck sake's, ya'll! I'm right here, an' ya didn't even let me explain myself!" He cried out hoarsely, crossing his arms and leaning against the wall. It was unclear if it was because he felt the need for comfort, or if he had made himself dizzy with the use of his magic whilst so ill.

But everyone was quiet, waiting.

"I said kinda cuz it ain't like Little Bones. My Gaster  _had to_ do this. Our place don't got enough resources to sustain a kingdom like the originals, or the swaps. We needed ta get out," Strawberry explained, his voice getting softer as he went about," when he figured out tha' I was... alive, he stopped fer a bit. I didn't understand much, but he insisted on explainin' ta me wha' was goin' on. After tha', even though resources were tight, an' it was hard ta convince the king, he made sure to make everything as painless as possible. He gave up on makin' me a weapon, an' focused all o' my trainin' on breakin' down the barrier."

"...alright, that's fair. But that doesn't explain how  your magic reserves seem so low." Sci pointed out.

"...I guess 'm sharin' my backstory. After Gaster fell, I didn't have anywhere ta go, so I ended up on the streets. I found Boss, an' I started usin' my magic all the time ta protect us. It's damaged me a quite a bit, I'll admit... I really should've told ya, Sci, but jus' a small monster cold could kill me at this point."

Sci inhaled, feeling more stress on his shoulders from that statement alone.

"Combine that with the fact that, like all Sanses, he has one HP, that's pretty bad." Candy said, likely not thinking.

"YOU HAVE ONE HP?!" Gaster screeched to Sci, who buried himself further into the couch.

"Sci, why didn't ya tell yer boss 'bout tha'?! Tha's sorta important!" Strawberry scolded.

"oh my god, we're getting off topic," Candy said, slamming his fist onto the coffee table," SHUT UP!"

...

"Thank you. Little Bones is missing, and that's what we need to be taking care of right now. Alphys, if you're anything like mine was, you have medical knowledge-" 

The lizard, who had just been the back, shaking, nodded some.

"-good, take Strawberry back into the guest room and focus your attention on him. Make sure he rests. Gaster, take Rus upstairs and I want you to make the sturdiest phone you can with a  _strong_ tracking device. Rus, help him make it kid friendly."

The four split off, numbly obeying at this point. 

"Finally, Sci, call Ink and tell him what happened."

"...he's gonna scream at me."

"Of course he is. But, if I call him, he might think that I'm projecting on Little Bones, or you guys took him out somewhere and I wasn't informed." Candy shrugged, shoving his hands into his jean pockets.

"Alright, but he's gonna get here pretty pissed."

"That's why I'm going to make tea for everyone. It's important to stay calm right now, anyway, and we all need to think rationally."

Sci squinted at him, adjusting his glasses," you're thinking fairly rationally right now."

"I'm good at controlling a crisis-worthy situation, Sci. I've had customers with issues before." Candy shrugged before strolling to the kitchen," just call him."

...

 

Sci closed his sockets, took a breather, then grabbed his phone from his pocket. He dialed the artist and held it up to his skull. It rang three times, the sound long and drawn out, tedious and painful, before an annoyed, panting voice rang out.

"Sci, this better be important." Ink hissed out. Sci could hear screaming in the background, and something slapping wetly against dry ground.

Sci went deadpan," Little Bones is missing."

 

...

 

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN HE'S MISSING!" Ink shrieked," NIGHTMARE, IF YOU GET ANY CLOSER, I'M RIPPING YOUR HEAD OFF AND MOUNTING IT ON MY FUCKING WALL."

Oh.

"Alright, he's missing? What the fuck happened?" 

"Well, uh, Gaster came over to drop off some files and Little Bones panicked and just... disappeared. Teleportation, right? Or did Error have portals?"

"Doesn't matter what he used- NIGHTMARE, PUT YOUR BROTHER DOWN OR IM STICKING MY BRUSH RIGHT UP-"

"Ink, can you just get here so we can fix this?" 

"Oh, right. Come on, Dream. And don't you dare continue this, Nightmare. Because I  _will not hesitate to erase you."_

____

 

When Ink arrived, Candy was already waiting by the door with a mug of steaming tea, which The Creator took gratefully and settled onto the couch next to Sci, who was staring into his mug. Dream came through shortly after, looking disheveled but equally as pleased by the drink. Once everyone was settled on the couch, aside from Candy, who sat on the coffee table.

"Any plans?" Ink asked the group.

"only for future prevention," replied Candy.

Ink groaned," is Mr. Pah here?"

 

The lesser Sanses shared a look before Sci spoke up," I think he ended up taking it with him. Why?"

"I could have used him to track Little Bones. He loves his bear so much that there's bound to be enough magic residue to track his magic signature." Ink explained, though disheartened.

"I can try to find him via emotions," Dream piped up," but I can't promise any results."

"We're going to have to find him the old fashioned way," the artist muttered," start calling everyone to help. We'll find him."

* * *

 

 

 

 

 

The first thing he felt as he came to was cold, cold concrete. The second was dull, throbbing pain on his arms and legs from a likely rough landing. The third, luckily, was the his beloved Mr. Pah, sandwiched between him and the floor he had fallen onto. 

He slowly pried himself up, a quiet, high-pitched whine being produced. Now on his knees, he took his time to look around.

 

With each slow pan over the area, dread festered further into his very being. Concrete floors, concrete walls, concrete ceiling, beams over the exit, a single bench... 

Two skeletons, dressed in hospital gowns and plates on their hands, staring at him with the same fear he felt.

Little Bones felt tears bubble forth as he pushed himself into the furthest wall from the other two, gripping his bear tightly. This couldn't be happening. This  _shouldn't be happening_. He had to get out, get away, he can't look at this again, he can't go through this again. No more tests. No more needles and scalpels and hurt and he couldn't take this; this wasn't fair. God, this wasn't fair. 

He buried his face into the belly of Mr. Pah. He felt his body do that thing again, back when he and Rus had been ease dropping; the tearing of his body, only to flicker back in place. Not painful, but unpleasant. He heard a sharp gasp when it began, and it only made him cry harder. 

 

This wasn't fair.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry I didn't respond yesterday. I was busy.


End file.
